The Russian athletes were utterly devastated as the country was barred from major international sporting events back in 2019, due to state-sponsored doping offenses. But with the Russian invasion of Ukraine a couple of years ago, the Russians were banned from presenting themselves as a part of the national team at the Paris Olympics. This meant that if the athletes won a medal, they wouldn’t be able to hoist the flag or puff up their chest in pride with the national anthem. 

Needless to say, this decision wasn’t well appreciated by the people of Russia. And the list included the UFC lightweight champion and P4P number 1, Islam Makhachev. The Dagestani expressed his disappointment with the 2024 Olympic Games on social media. However, he wasn’t far behind in commending the athletes who wrestled their way to victory at the Paris Olympics.

Islam Makhachev cheers for major Olympic wins by Russian wrestlers

Being an avid practitioner of wrestling, the UFC lightweight champion knows the struggles of the athletes who compete at events like the Olympics. Despite the turmoil faced by their homeland, many wrestlers impressed the whole wide world and won medals at the Paris Olympics. One of them was Magomed Ramazanov, the Russian-born Bulgarian freestyle wrestler who looks like Khabib Nurmagomedov, who won the gold grappling at 86 kg (190 pounds). Makhachev took to Instagram and shared stories, where he congratulated Ramazanov and called him a “Hero.” 

Ramazanov wasn’t the only one who received praise from the mixed martial artist. He also congratulated Akhmed Tazhudinov, Razambek Zhamalov, Magomedkhan Magomedov, Dauren Kurugliev, and Kadik Magumedov, for their impressive victories at the Olympic Games. However, the Dagestani didn’t back away from taking a jab at the Olympics and the ‘dirty politics’ involved. After all, he wasn’t happy about his homeland being banned from the event.

Makhachev, in one of the IG stories, wrote, “And so these days I enjoyed watching the fight. It’s a pity that this dirty politics got into such a courageous sport. People who gave their whole lives to this sport and got a chance to compete at the Olympic Games are forced to stay at home and watch the Olympics of TV. The double standards of dirty countries deprive our athletes of what they have been striving for all their lives.”

Even though Makhachev claimed to have enjoyed the wrestling bouts in Paris, he wasn’t one who enjoyed the opening ceremonies. Right after the Paris Olympics entertained many with the opening ceremony, Makhachev bashed the event on X.

UFC LW champ wants to bring the Olympics to Russia

Taking to X, Makhachev claimed that the Paris Olympics was a “shame and dark stain on Olympic movement.” He put forth a video that showed a comparison between the 2014 Russian Olympics and the 2024 French Olympics. Needless to say, the Dagestani fighter was not impressed with the event in France. 

But when Makhachev appeared in an interview with Ushatayka, he revealed his honest opinion about the event. He said, “This is disrespectful to all religions in general and to all human values. To be honest, I even planned to go to the Olympics. After that, I don’t even want to go there.” With his tweet about the opening ceremony making circles on the internet, a conversation about bringing the Olympics back to Russia was meant to occur. Weighing in on that, Makhachev said, “Well, first of all, Russia understands how to uphold human values. It respects athletes and the sport. I don’t think it has anything to do with the sport.”

What are your thoughts about Makhachev’s views on the 2024 Olympic Games? Let us know what you think in the comments down below.