A very serious scandal is occurring that will create a great shock in the Russian sports world and lead to extensive discussions.
Medianews.az, referring to Musavat.com, reports that the world-famous Russian champion in figure skating, Evgeni Plushenko, has harshly criticized the current sports environment in his country and declared that his son will henceforth represent Azerbaijan. The famous athlete stated that athletes in Russia are currently massively regressing and degrading.
According to Plushenko, due to international sanctions, competitions held only within Russia cannot provide athletes with the necessary level of development and competition. He emphasized that he took this step to save his son’s future career: "He absolutely must compete internationally, skate there, and perform. Because, to be honest, a complete degradation process is happening here now. It is certainly nice to go to competitions in Kirov, Perm, Yekaterinburg, or the Moscow region. But this means that our athletes are being professionally destroyed and degraded."
This sensational decision by the world champion has caused a serious wave of discontent among the Russian sports leadership and media.