The skiers insist that Russians should not be allowed to compete under their own flag

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is investigating German skiers Linn Kazmaier and Florian Baumann after they turned their backs on Russian gold medalists during a ceremony on Tuesday.

Kazmaier, who is visually impaired, and Baumann, her guide, finished in second place to Russia's Anastasia Bagiyan and guide Sergey Sinyakin in the women's sprint race at the Milano Cortina Paralympics.

Kazmaier and Baumann left their hats on and turned their backs to Bagiyan and Sinyakin as the Russian anthem played on the podium. They then kept their distance from the Russians and refused to join them in posting for a photo with China's Jihong Cong and Jiaxuan Liu, who finished in third place.

"With Germany, we are aware of the situation, gathering evidence and analyzing it," IPC spokesman Craig Spence said on Wednesday.

Speaking to German media, Kazmaier and Baumann insisted that they did nothing wrong. "I don't know these people: maybe they don't support the system in Russia either. Maybe they are really nice people who we could actually be friends with. But it's such a shame that politics overshadows everything," Kazmaier told German broadcaster ARD.

This year's games mark the first time that Russian and Belarusian athletes have been allowed to compete in the Paralympics since the Ukraine conflict escalated in 2022, and the first time that they have competed under their own flags since 2014.

The IPC's decision to readmit Russian and Belarusian athletes has angered Ukraine and its supporters. Ukraine and ten other countries, including Germany, boycotted the games' opening ceremony on Friday in response.

"I simply do not think it is right that the IPC has decided that Russia can compete here under its own flag, with its own anthem and with a full band, while the Ukrainians are also here," Baumann told Germany's ZDF on Wednesday.

Kiev also lashed out at the International Olympic Committee (IOC) during last month's winter Olympics, after several Ukrainian athletes were ordered to remove clothing and flags bearing political symbols. These included skeleton pilot Vladislav Geraskevich, who was disqualified for refusing to remove a helmet adorned with images of Ukrainian athletes killed during the conflict with Russia.

Even though Russian athletes competed under a neutral flag and broke no rules at the games, Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky insisted that "they are the ones who deserve disqualification." 

Russia's six athletes have so far won four gold medals and two bronze at this year's Paralympics. Bagiyan has taken two golds, and in a letter to the skier, Russian President Vladimir Putin praised her "strength of spirit and character," and her "worthy contribution to the development of domestic and world Paralympism."