August 02, 2021

The Purrfect PPE


The Purrfect PPE
Nothing says fierce competitor like a cute kitty-cat.  Photo via Evgeny Rylov / Instagram

Russian swimmer Evgeny Rylov entered the Olympic pool in Tokyo for the final 100-meter backstroke looking a little bit catty. Instead of wearing a stylized facemask to match his team uniforms, like many athletes from other countries seem to be doing, Rylov decided to take the path of self-expression and wear an adorable kitty facemask to the Olympic event. 

Like many Russians, Rylov is a huge cat-lover. He even has three pet cats back home in Russia, which you can see featured in many inexplicably shirtless selfies on his Instagram page. Supposedly, his girlfriend gifted him the kitty mask, and Rylov desperately wanted to wear it to the Olympics, to display his love for cats to the whole world. 

The sad news is that, while he was allowed to wear the mask out to the pool, he was forbidden to actually wear it during the presentation of the award when he won gold, which, in his own words, made him want to cry. So sure, a cat has yet to take home Olympic gold, but we are sure Rylov's cats are still very proud of his athletic achievements. Maybe they can fly there to be with him for the next Olympics, that is if they meet the weight requirements

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