The representative of the Russian kickboxing champions admits that the loss of their passports in the visa center could be related to politics

Ural FC Director General Kirill Sidelnikov said “Match TV” that he does not believe in the loss of the visa center of Portugal of the foreign passports of Russia in kickboxing Ivan Zinoviev and Artem Shvetsov on the eve of the tournament in Lisbon.

Earlier, the Shot Telegram channel said that Zinoviev and Shvetsov, as well as coaches Sergey Matveev and Igor Kulbaev, submitted documents to the visa center of Portugal in Yekaterinburg, but for two months they could not get a passport under the pretext of their loss. The athletes have already missed the tournament in Lisbon on May 8, also under the threat of passing the June European kickboxing Championship in Moldova.

– Yes, this is absolutely true. Our athletes were signed for Portuguese promotion, they had to perform. The documents were submitted on time, but in the visa center in Yekaterinburg they said that the passports were lost. This is nonsense. Everyone understands that these athletes are one of the best in the country in their weight categories, the top kickboxers who can calmly come and win the Victory Day on May 9, proudly raise the flag if they were allowed.

Political background? I hope that sport outside politics. But we all understand that there is something in this, because the tournament was May 8. The loss of passports is stupid.

The guys trained, spent the effort, time and money on preparation, but in the end the battles did not take place. This morally affects them and their coaches. On behalf of the League, I’ll say that in the whischer tournaments we will make fights for them, possibly with those rivals that they had to have, ”said Match TV, representing the interests of the Match TV, of the Elubic City Boxers.