NHL star Alex Ovechkin appeared in an ad campaign for United Russia, and honestly, it is absolutely time to demand some real answers about his stances, no matter how much he wants to duck the conversation. This isn’t some offhand comment from an athlete, folks. This is a full-on campaign video, and it utterly contradicts everything we thought we knew about his so-called non-political position.
The ‘Athlete Not Politician’ Story Is DONE
Let’s be real, Ovechkin’s closeness to Vladimir Putin has been an open secret for years. Back in 2022, when Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, reporters asked him directly for his thoughts. His response then? A classic dodge: “He is my president,” Ovechkin said of Putin, adding, “But, I said, I’m not in politics, I’m an athlete.” That was after years of boosting the Russian president on social media and even featuring Putin in his Instagram profile photo. Sounds political to me, even then! But now? Forget about it. He’s in politics. Plain and simple.
This Video Is No Joke
The video everyone is talking about? Ovechkin taped it for United Russia, a group that backs Putin, all before upcoming parliamentary elections. This isn’t some casual selfie, no way; he’s sharing the screen with serious players: Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, and Margarita Simonyan, who is the editor-in-chief of the state-controlled media outlet RT. That’s some heavy company. Ovechkin told reporters Thursday, “I’m Russian,” when asked about it. He also offered up, “I’m for peace and love, and I hope, in the world, it doesn’t matter who you are. I hope everybody understands everybody wants peace, and everybody hope everything’s going to be OK in the world.” Those are big words, but appearing in a political campaign video for a specific party supporting Putin? That’s an action that screams politics.
Ovechkin can claim “peace and love” all he wants, but his actions in this video, standing alongside Lavrov and Simonyan, speak volumes more. This isn’t a quick interview clip or an Instagram post from years ago. This is a fresh, public endorsement for an election, and it means the tough questions about his political views are absolutely not going anywhere. We will be watching to see how he tries to explain this going forward.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Guardian.
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