Moscow is turning participants of the war against Ukraine into Paralympic athletes. Ukraine's Defense Intelligence has identified the Russian athletes who served in tank crews, infantry troops in Donetsk Oblast, and as battalion armament commanders.
The athletes have entered Paralympic sports through rehabilitation programs for participants of the so-called “special military operation”, the term which Russia uses to conceal its war crimes against Ukraine.
This is a joint project of the Russian Paralympic Committee and the All-Russian public movement “Zdorovoye Otechestvo” called “Heroes of Our Time,” aimed at supporting participants of the war who have become disabled.
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Through Paralympic sport, participants of the invasion of Ukraine are being physically and socially rehabilitated and reintegrated.
Among the Russian “para-athletes” made public today:
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Vladislav Leonidovich Shinkar — member of the Russian Paralympic wheelchair fencing team; previously served as deputy battalion commander for armaments and deputy battalion commander for personnel work in the “Vostok” battalion.
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Anton Pavlovich Bushmakin — member of the national paracanoe team (for athletes with musculoskeletal impairments); a sapper and former marine who took part in combat operations near Avdiivka in the Donetsk region. He is the subject of the documentary film “Shagay”, in which he states that he is preparing for the Paralympics and intends to compete under the Russian flag.
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Tsiden Bairovich Geninov — member of the Russian Armed Forces team, nominee for “Best Athlete of 2025” according to the International Military Sports Council (CISM); a lieutenant in the Russian Armed Forces. He served in the 5th Separate Guards Tank Tatsinskaya Brigade, which participated in the offensive toward Kyiv Oblast.
Such Russian athletes should be excluded from the global sports community and barred from participation in international competitions, even under neutral status, the agency claims.
