The Kremlin hosted a handful of fighters, including UFC’s Bantamweight Champion Petr Yan, as Vladimir Putin passed out state decorations. Yan was awarded with the For Merit to the Fatherland medal. 

At the beginning of the ceremony, Putin addressed the athletes and representatives of the Russian Boxing Federation in attendance. 

“Your performances and results contribute significantly in Russia’s efforts to assert its leadership in global sports, which it holds firmly despite unscrupulous attempts to undermine it,” he said. “The shameful, and, frankly, cowardly, politically motivated behavior by the former executives of the International Olympic Committee has caused enormous damage to the Olympic movement and to the very principles of Olympism.”

He continued, “The discriminatory sanctions against Russian athletes, ostensibly condemning Russia’s actions to protect our people and our interests in the Ukraine conflict, while ignoring numerous similar armed conflicts around the globe have only exposed the corruption and political bias of a significant portion of international sports officials.”

Yan won the UFC Bantamweight title in his last fight against Merab Dvalishvili, pushing his record in the promotion to 12-4 and 20-5 overall. 

The sanctions Putin refers to has seen Olympic athletes from Russia competing without an association since 2017, firstly due to a 2015 report on widespread doping, and then also because of the 2022 invasion of Ukraine. In the beginning throes of conflict, Yan took to social media to promote peace between both countries. A peace that has not been found in four years. 

The argument the Kremlin is making referring to other countries applies specifically to the US and Israel for the widespread conflict in the Middle East. The 2028 Summer Olympics will be hosted in Los Angeles, while the 2034 Winter Olympics will be held in Salt Lake City. 

UFC will be hosting an event on the South Lawn at the White House on June 14, with DHS having confirmed the event as SEAR Level 1, on par with the Super Bowl for federal security requirements. UFC was also working with the FBI only recently to train and converse with agents-in-training at Quantico.