“Disgusting”: Ukraine Demands IOC Investigation Over Russian Carrying Ukrainian Placard

Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs will demand that the International Olympic Committee conduct an investigation into the participation of Russian national Anastasia Kucherova, who carried the Ukrainian team placard during the opening ceremony of the 2026 Olympic Games.

The Foreign Ministry spokesperson Heorhii Tykhyi announced this during a briefing on February 18, hromadske reported.

The ministry is also calling on the IOC to issue an apology for the incident and to carry out an internal investigation.

“The fact that the International Olympic Committee chose a Russian to carry the Ukrainian team’s placard is disgusting. It goes beyond any human morality or any principle. It is simply difficult to describe. I cannot even imagine what was going through the mind of the person at the IOC who saw that this Russian woman had applied and approved her,” Tykhyi said.

The controversy stems from a decision by the Milan-Cortina Winter Games organizers to allow Anastasia Kucherova, a Russian citizen residing in Milan, to carry Ukraine’s placard during the opening ceremony, the Associated Press reported on February 17.

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Anti-Fake

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Kucherova, an architect who has lived in Milan for 14 years, represented one of the 92 participating nations. Carrying the illuminated Ukraine sign, she led five Ukrainian athletes into San Siro stadium, with her Russian nationality neither announced nor evident to the audience.

Country assignments were initially meant to be random, but after volunteers were asked if they had preferences, Kucherova reportedly chose Ukraine. She said this reflected “some profound connection” between Russians and Ukrainians “that obviously could live on if not for the war.”

Earlier, a coordinated online disinformation campaign attributed to the Russian-linked bot network “Matryoshka” has targeted Ukrainian skeleton athlete Vladyslav Heraskevych following his disqualification from the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan.

According to an investigation published by The Insider on February 16, 2026, the campaign appears designed to weaponize the controversy surrounding his protest in an attempt to erode international backing for Ukraine.

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