Russia's Nepryayeva Was Disqualified For Using Someone Else's Skis

• 22.02.2026, 20:09

Russian Federation ended the 2026 Olympics with a failure.

Russian athletes have once again found themselves at the center of a scandal at the Winter Olympics. 23-year-old skier Darya Nepryayeva, who was competing in a neutral status, used her rival's skis during the marathon race, for which she was disqualified. This was reported by Russian media.

They say that Nepryaeva mistakenly entered the wrong service box and wore skis belonging to German athlete Katharina Hennig. Despite this, the Russian finished the course in 11th place, but after the finish her result was canceled.

The reason for the disqualification was a violation of the regulations - the use of someone else's equipment. In the final protocol Katharina Hennig took the ninth position.

This start was the last one for Russian athletes at the current Olympics. Nepryaeva competed as a neutral athlete, and the incident effectively drew a line under the participation of Russian representatives in the Games.

In general, the results of neutral athletes were very modest. The only medal was won by Nikita Filippov, who became a silver medalist in ski mountaineering, a discipline included in the Olympic program for the first time. Russian athletes did not win any other medals.