Russian gymnast who wore pro-war symbol while stood next to Ukrainian rival has appealed the lengthy ban he was hit with

• Russian gymnast Ivan Kuliak has appealed his one-year ban from the sport.
• The 20-year-old was banned for wearing a pro-war "Z" symbol on his outfit at a medal ceremony.

The Russian gymnast who wore a pro-war "Z" symbol while stood next to a Ukrainian during a medal ceremony has lodged an appeal against his one year ban from the sport.

In March, around two weeks after the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, Ivan Kuliak displayed the symbol on the podium after winning bronze in the parallel bars final at the Apparatus World Cup in Doha, Qatar.

Illia Kovtun of Ukraine won gold in the event.

The "Z" symbol has been painted on the side of Russian military vehicles invading Ukraine and has been promoted by people supporting the invasion.

As a result of his actions, in May, the Disciplinary Commission of the Gymnastics Ethics Foundation (GEF) barred Kuliak from competing in the sport for a year and ordered him to return his prize money of around $500.

According to Russia's official state news agency TASS, the 20-year-old has now appealed the decision.

"Kuliak filed an appeal with the Gymnastic Ethics Foundation Appeal Tribunal against the decision of the disciplinary commission to disqualify him for one year," Vasily Titov, President of the Russian Artistic Gymnastics Federation (FSGR) told TASS.

GEF confirmed to Insider that an appeal had been filed by Kuliak.

Kuliak has previously defended his decision to wear the "Z" symbol on his chest during the ceremony, saying he would do the same again if he had the chance.

"If there was a second chance and I had a choice whether to go out with the letter 'Z' on my chest or not, I would do the same," he said.

"I saw it on our military and looked at what this symbol means. It turned out to be 'for victory' and 'for peace.' I just wanted to show my position. As an athlete, I will always fight for victory and play for peace."