Two Ukrainian gymnasts made gestures at the 2026 European Junior Championships that gained attention. The event is taking place in Varna, Bulgaria. Both moments came during medal ceremonies on Thursday.

The first happened during the ribbon final. Russia's Yana Zaikina took gold, while Ukraine's Sofia Krainska finished with silver. Germany's Melissa Diete rounded out the podium with bronze.

As the Russian anthem played, Krainska put on headphones. She also covered her eyes with her hands. The moment was shared widely on social media.

A similar scene played out during the ball final. Belarus' Kira Babkevich won gold in that event. Ukraine's Varvara Chubarova took bronze and made the same gesture during the medal ceremony.

This is the first meet where Russian and Belarusian gymnasts are competing under their own flags and anthems since February 2022. World Gymnastics lifted the restrictions on May 18. European Gymnastics followed soon after.

The Ukrainian Gymnastics Federation has spoken out against the decision. They have called for an extraordinary World Gymnastics congress to revisit the ruling. They also asked European Gymnastics to reconsider.

World Gymnastics responded with a statement of its own. "The Executive Committee's decision to lift all restrictions imposed on Russian and Belarusian athletes is based on the principle of equal treatment for all athletes regardless of nationality," it read. The body added that sport should remain a "neutral platform."

A Similar Moment Earlier This Year

This is not the first time a protest of this kind has happened in rhythmic gymnastics. A similar incident took place just two months ago. It happened at the Sofia Rhythmic World Cup on March 30.

In that event, Ukraine's Taisiia Onofriichuk won gold in the hoop final. Russia's Sofiia Ilteriakova, who was competing as a neutral athlete at the time, took silver. Italy's Sofia Raffaeli won bronze.

The moment came during the medal ceremony. The Ukrainian national anthem played for Onofriichuk. Ilteriakova did not turn to face the flags, which is required under World Gymnastics rules.

The response was swift. World Gymnastics issued a warning to Ilteriakova. Officials said any further breach would lead to her losing her neutral athlete status.

Read more at the Gymnastics Digest!

Written by

Sahil Prashar

Edited by

Sahil Prashar