Olympian Kovtun decides to change citizenship and represent Croatia: NOC says this is unacceptable

Illia Kovtun at the Paris Olympics

Gymnast Ilya Kovtun, who won silver at the 2024 Olympics in summer, wants to change his citizenship and represent Croatia. The president of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, Vadym Hutsait, said he was unaware of the decision and found it unacceptable.

Hutsait told Tribuna.com about this.

It is now known that the athlete and his coach Iryna Horbachova have already applied for a Croatian passport. Kovtun is to receive Croatian citizenship under an expedited procedure. The Croatian Gymnastics Federation has already given «the green light» for Kovtun's performances.

However, the NOC claims that it is impossible to get in touch with the athlete. They spoke only to the coach. Vadym Hutsait stressed that the athlete was offered all the conditions, including training abroad, and was ready to meet him halfway.

«When athletes change their citizenship, it's not treated very well in life. And during a war, I think it's a bad thing to do, if it's really true. Because it only appeared in the press, we don't know if it's true or not,» said the NOC president.

It will be recalled that in August 2024, at the Olympics in Paris, Illia Kovtun brought Ukraine its second silver medal in the parallel bars competition.