Russian Yulia Pakhalina, the 2000 Olympic diving champion who has been living in the USA for more than 20 years, wants to return to her homeland. The words of the former athlete were quoted TASS.
“I would love to move to Moscow, I love this city. I really love Moscow and everything connected with Russia. The situation is not bad in America, but this is not home, this is not Russia. “I don’t feel like I belong to the country I live in now,” Pakhalina said.
In addition to her gold medal at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney, 47-year-old Pakhalina also has three silver and one bronze medal at the Games. Last week he was inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame in the United States, along with Olympic water polo champion Vladimir Akimov.
At the end of February 2022, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) appealed to international sports federations, recommending that domestic and Belarusian athletes not be allowed to participate in any competitions. The organization decided to admit Russians and Belarusians to the 2024 Olympic Games as neutral athletes at the end of 2023. To participate, they had to meet a series of requirements and qualify.
Former Ukrainian Olympic champion in biathlon disqualified for doping.