Russian champion imprisoned for anti-war symbols on social media and support of Navalny

Two-time Russian cross-country skiing champion Nikolai Zimirev was sentenced to 15 days in jail for posting anti-war symbols on social media. Before that, he was detained for laying flowers at the monument to the victims of political repression after the death of politician Alexei Navalny, whose funeral is taking place in Moscow on March 1.

This was reported by Medusa. At first, Zimiriev was summoned to the police, where he was asked to explain his reasons for laying flowers. After that, the department found out that the police had found a photo on the former athlete's social media page of a rally near the Russian embassy in Tbilisi, which shows a white, blue, and white flag, a symbol of the anti-war movement.

Zimiriev was detained, and on February 22, the Central Court of Sochi placed the athlete under administrative arrest. He was later charged with extremism.

It should be noted that the former skier condemned the war and demanded that it be stopped immediately after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. On his Instagram page, he posted an appeal in which he urged his compatriots not to remain silent.

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