Kravchenko and Maximova and their son are currently spending their holidays in Germany, where they say they intend to stay.
–
“After much deliberation, we decided not to return to Belarus. Unfortunately, we are in a position where we can lose not only freedom but also life. In Germany, we can breathe freely and fight for the freedom of people, friends and relatives, “Maximová said on Instagram.
–
On her profile you can also find a photo in which she is dressed only in a historic white flag with a red stripe, which today represents the Belarusian opposition and a world that does not belong to the authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko.
–
Her husband Andrei Kravchenko is one of the most famous athletes in Belarus. In 2008, he won a silver medal at the Beijing Olympics. In addition, he still holds the Belarusian national record in decathlon.
–
According to information from Radio Free Europe, the coach of the Viteju Minsk handball players, Konstantin Yakovlev, also escaped from Belarus. He took part in protests against President Lukashenko’s regime in June, for which he spent two weeks in prison.
–
The decision of the athletes came after the sprinter and participant of this year’s Olympic Games in Tokyo Kryscina Cimanouská stated that she was taken against the will to the airport, from which she was to take the first plane back to Minsk. The athlete then turned to the Japanese police and asked for protection.
–
Several countries, including the Czech Republic, offered sprinter assistance. Cimanouská eventually accepted a visa from Poland, where she should apply for asylum. On Wednesday, she flew from the venue to Vienna, from where she should then move to Warsaw. There he meets her husband Arseniy Zdanevich, who managed to escape from Belarus to Ukraine.
—
