00:00The Games are open. In the Italian city of Milan, the Winter Olympics opening ceremony took place
00:06on Friday. The dazzling event created buzz across the globe, even in Russia, where the event was
00:13broadcast in places like this pub. Russia's participation in international sports competitions
00:19has been restricted since it started its invasion of neighboring Ukraine in 2022.
00:24That includes this year's Winter Olympics. Some Russian athletes are allowed to participate but have to do so under a neutral banner.
00:33It's a beautiful show, but we Russians would still like to see our athletes participating, at least in a neutral status.
00:41We want to feel proud of them for at least making it there.
00:45We are not happy about that black flag, but in fact, what we see is the ceremony of sport, the ceremony of the whole world friendship.
01:01It's not about all this political stuff, and that's why we all believe that it's going to be changed maybe in a few months or a few years,
01:14and we all are going to forget this thing.
01:18Sanctioned nations like Russia and Belarus are not allowed to compete with national delegations,
01:24but calls for a renewed full participation of the athletes have recently become louder in Russia.
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