The girlfriend of Russian Olympic hero Dmitri Soloviev has revealed that doctors are treating the ice dancing gold medalist for a brain hematoma after he was attacked in front of her outside a karaoke club after coming to her aid.
The 32-year-old is being cared for by neurologists at the Botkin Hospital in Moscow following an alleged assault outside a venue in the city when he is said to have become embroiled in a horrifying altercation.
Girlfriend Anna Sidorova, the European curling champion who Soloviev is said to have been defending at the time, has now revealed that the 2014 Olympic gold medalist has a brain hematoma amid reports that three men have been detained and are facing years in prison over the alleged incident.
"His condition is still difficult," Sidorova told her thousands of worried fans on Instagram.
"Communication with him is very limited – doctors forbid him to communicate more often than once or twice a day.
"He says he wants to sleep all the time and his head continues to hurt. The next four days are the most dangerous because even doctors cannot predict changes in hematoma in the brain."
Stunned Sidorova told the Russian Olympic Committee Telegram channel, via Metaratings, that the group "didn’t touch anyone" and "didn’t do anything" to start the scuffle.
"I am simply amazed how Dima continued to remain calm," she reportedly added.
"Even at the moment when he was repeatedly bullied and beaten, he understood that this is not how issues are resolved in the civilized world."
Experts have put Soloviev on a drip and given him injections. Sidorova said they were planning to perform a CT scan on his brain on Tuesday night.
His attackers, who were said to have been involved in a skirmish purportedly captured by video footage that circulated on social media, could face between five and 12 years behind bars, depending on the extent of his injuries.
One account said that the mortality rate for such an injury is around ten percent before victims even reach hospital.
“I would put them in jail for 10 years," said Yana Rudkovskaya, the influencer and producer wife of two-time Olympic figure skating champion Evgeni Plushenko, speaking to Sport Express about the prospect of culprits being formally identified.
"And it would [send a] significant [message] to others. I will be extremely happy if everything is fine with Dima... we will protect Dima to the last. Nobody will allowed to cover up the case."
Olympic silver medalist ice dancer Ilya Averbukh told Match TV that the situation was "extremely unpleasant".
"I can only say the best about Dima," he added. "He is an honest guy; he has never been seen at any parties.
"Unfortunately, some kind of aggression reigns in our society which results in such episodes."
Sidorova previously said that three people became aggressive when they were asked for a cigarette lighter by a member of her group, with matters turning violent when Soloviev told the trio to show more respect for the women.
He is then said to have been pushed to the ground, hitting his head on a door as he fell before being violently kicked while on the floor.
"One of my friends asked for a lighter from a group of three young men. He looked 18 years old," she told the channel.
"Dmitri just lay there when they kicked him. It wasn't a fight; we can say that it was an attack on their part."
Sidorova offered gratitude on behalf of the couple in her update. "We are extremely pleased that so many people care," she said. "For us now, everyone's support is really important and valuable.
"Together with you, I send all my strength to Dima. The most important thing is that he now gets better.
"I am still in a state of shock. [There have been] an insane number of calls from the media.
"I ask you to understand that, so far, it has not been possible to answer everyone and express words of gratitude personally. I hug everyone and thank you."
Soloviev is considered one of the finest ice dancers of his generation and has recently been competing on television show Ice Age.