Tennis player Elina Svitolina and swimmer Mykhailo Romanchuk were elected flag bearers of the Ukrainian national team at the opening of the Olympic Games in Paris, Ukraine's National Olympic Committee announced on July 25.
Starting with the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, countries have two flag bearers, one male and one female, at the opening and closing ceremonies. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) introduced this change to ensure gender balance.
The 2024 Olympic Games are gender-balanced for the first time in history, with 50% women and 50% men among the participants, according to the IOC.
Svitolina and Romanchuk were medalists at the previous Olympics in Tokyo. Svitolina won bronze in the individual tennis competition, while Romanchuk became a silver and bronze medalist in the 1500 m and 800 m freestyle events, respectively.
The opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympics will take place on July 26.
Only 140 Ukrainian athletes will compete at the Olympic Games in Paris this year, the smallest number in the history of the country's participation in the games, according to Ukraine's National Olympic Committee.
Ukraine will be represented in 23 sports in Paris. Ukrainian athletes will compete in football, breakdancing, and sport climbing for the first time at the Olympics.
The full-scale invasion has significantly affected the preparation of Ukrainian athletes for the competition in Paris, the National Olympic Committee's president, Vadym Gutzeit, said on July 9 at a press conference in Kyiv.
Over 500 Ukrainian sports facilities have been damaged or destroyed since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion. Some of the facilities are located in the Russian-held territories, according to the NOC's president.
Elsa Court
