Ukraine insists. After the World Judo Championships held at the beginning of the month in Doha, it is also preparing to boycott the World Taekwondo Championships. They are to be held from May 29 to June 4, 2023 in Baku, Azerbaijan. Reason invoked: the presence of a Russian team engaged under cover of neutrality. The announcement was made by the vice president of the Ukrainian Federation of Taekwondo, Serhii Vasylchenko. The Ukrainian leader confirmed the withdrawal of his team, explaining it by the presence at the Worlds of Baku of athletes coming “from aggressor countries” and “military personnel“. Ten days before the opening of the competition, the list of neutral participants, from Russia and Belarus, has not yet been confirmed. But the international authority of the discipline, World Taekwondo, would currently consider the case of two Russian athletes, Maksim Khramtsov (photo above) and Vladislav Larin. One and the other would have publicly displayed their support for the war in Ukraine.
