«While away life in oblivion in a foreign land»: Valuev — about changing citizenship

MOSCOW, July 13, Oleg Bogatov. Russian State Duma deputy Nikolai Valuev said, that it is difficult to condemn athletes who, under international sanctions, decide to change citizenship, but in Russia it is historically not customary to forgive betrayal, athletes may later regret their choice. At the end of February, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended international sports federations not to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in competitions due to the situation in Ukraine. A number of international organizations excluded Russians and Belarusians from tournaments under their auspices, and also canceled the competitions in Russia. Other federations allowed athletes in a neutral status. «If I say that this will not happen, I will be wrong. Most likely, this will happen, but not en masse. Ideologically, this is still such a loss for Russia as a country. I would not want to justify those «who are going to do just that. Because it's always convenient to argue after the fact. It suddenly breaks through the spark of truth of the former Pentagon generals. They retire and start talking about some flaws in the American military. That aircraft carriers are full of holes or planes of the wrong system, » Valuev said.