Russia-Ukraine war: Vladimir Putin stripped of Taekwondo black belt

Europe remains in chaos as Russia and Ukraine are engaged in a conflict, leading to a war. While the former launched a full-scale invasion on the latter, the world has turned against Russia and its president Vladimir Putin. As sanctions continue to be imposed on the country, Putin has been stripped of his taekwondo black belt.

World Taekwondo (WT) sent out a statement on Tuesday morning, clarifying that Putin’s current actions defy its vision of “Peace is More Precious than Triumph”. Valuing its respect and tolerance, it has strongly condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has also led to the loss of some innocent lives. Also, WT and European Taekwondo Union (ETU) will not recognise Taekwondo events in Russia and Belarus, as the latter has aided the former in the attacks.

ALSO READ: War on Ukraine - Which Russian teams are affected by FIFA, UEFA suspension?

“In this regard, World Taekwondo has decided to withdraw the honorary 9th dan black belt conferred to Vladimir Putin in November 2013. World Taekwondo’s thoughts are with the people of Ukraine, and we hope for a peaceful and immediate end to this war,” WT’s statement read.

The development comes just a couple of days after Putin was removed as the honorary president of the International Judo Federation (IJF). “In light of the ongoing war conflict in Ukraine, the International Judo Federation announces the suspension of Mr Vladimir Putin’s status as Honorary President and Ambassador of the International Judo Federation,” IJF has announced in a statement.

ALSO READ: Russia-Ukraine crisis - Australian swimmers to boycott world championship in Russia

On February 24, Putin ordered the Russian military to carry out an operation in the region of Donbas to protect its people. He recognised Donetsk and Luhansk (Ukraine’s breakaway regions) as independent territories. While Russia continues to face heavy criticisms from the Western countries, the United States of America (USA), the United Kingdom (UK) and Germany continue to impose fresh sanctions on Russia.