After declining to speak with the media on Thursday, hours after Russia invaded Ukraine, Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin broke his silence a day later. The 12-time NHL All-Star from Russia said he's hoping for "no more war."
Ovechkin called the situation "hard" because he has friends in both Russia and Ukraine. The 36-year-old added he wants "peace in the whole world" sooner rather than later.
"Please, no more war," Ovechkin said. "It doesn't matter who is in the war — Russia, Ukraine, different countries — I think we live in a world, like, we have to live in peace and a great world."
While Ovechkin criticized the war, he directed no negative words toward Russian president Vladimir Putin. A longtime supporter of Putin, Ovechkin called him "my president" on Friday and said it is a "hard situation right now for both sides." Ovechkin established a social movement called PutinTeam in 2017 to strengthen his re-election bid.
Ovechkin's anti-war sentiment mirrors that of another Russian athlete. World No. 7 tennis player Andrey Rublev wrote "no war please" on a nearby camera lens immediately after he advanced to the Dubai Open final on Friday.
Russia's invasion reportedly reached Ukraine's capital of Kyiv on Friday.
