MOSCOW, April 26 Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke about the removal of Russian swimmer Yevgeny Rylov from the competition, saying that the matter was brought to the point of absurdity.
"Unfortunately, we meet with cases that bring this situation or such actions, such a policy of our partners to the point of absurdity. A very recent example is with our swimmer Evgeny Rylov. The International Swimming Federation suspended him from the competition for nine months only for his presence — for attending a concert dedicated to the anniversary of the reunification of Russia and Crimea. They just brought the matter to complete absurdity,» Putin said at a meeting with Russian athletes.
The International Swimming Federation (FINA) on Friday announced that Rylov was suspended from competitions under the auspices of the organization for nine months for participating in a concert-rally in «Luzhniki».