Artem Darenskyi and Sofiia Holichenko, who represent Ukraine in pairs skating, have refuted reports that they are prohibited from speaking Russian, adding that it’s up to them to decide which language to use.
The figure skaters took part in the Olympic team event and reportedly answered questions in Russian after the competition – in contrast to recent comments made by Ukrainian skater Ivan Shmuratko, who refused to speak Russian at a press conference.
Shmuratko quickly switched to English when responding to a question asked by a Russian journalist, apparently following instructions from Ukrainian officials to avoid “Russian provocations” at the Winter Games.