Five-time Olympic synchronized swimming champion Anastasia Davydova will not renounce her Russian citizenship even though she has left the country, according to reports.
The 39-year-old departed Russia in September and reportedly notified staff at her swimming center in Moscow that she had “no plans to return” to her homeland.
The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), where Davydova was secretary general, said it hadn’t received a formal resignation from the 13-time world champion and could not confirm details of her departure.
But citing Russian Synchronized Swimming Federation executive secretary Valentina Nemogaeva, TASS reported on Thursday that Davydova had sent a letter to the organization with an indication of her plans.
“Anastasia Davydova sent a statement to the presidium of the federation with a request to withdraw her from its composition,” Nemogaeva explained.
“According to her statement, there will be a presidium at the end of the week where we will withdraw her from the composition. According to the charter, we cannot do it differently, all you need is a personal statement.”
Nemogaeva said that she did not know the reasons for Davydova’s unexpected departure from Russia.
“The only question I asked was whether they are renouncing Russian citizenship.
“She wrote to me that she will not, and that this does not mean that they have left forever,” Nemogaeva added.
As a five-time Olympic gold medalist, 13-time world champion, and seven-time European champion, Davydova is widely regarded as one of the greatest artistic swimmers of all time.
Her gold medals were achieved by winning twice in Athens in 2004 and Beijing in 2008, before clinching her final title at London 2012.
This puts her joint-second on the all-time list in the sport, with a haul only bettered by compatriot Svetlana Romashina.
Romashina surpassed Davydova at Tokyo 2020 last summer by winning two gold medals and taking her tally to seven.