On Tuesday night, January 17, Philadelphia Flyers’ player of the Russian origin, Ivan Provorov, refused to wear a gay pride warm-up jersey on the team’s Pride Night, citing religious beliefs.
For the pregame skate, the “Philadelphia Flyers” wore Pride-themed jerseys displaying names and numbers in rainbow colors and wrapped their sticks in rainbow tape. The “Flyers” defenseman Ivan Provorov boycotted Tuesday’s pre-game skate over his refusal to wear a Pride-themed warm-up jersey. The 26-year-old player from Russia cited his Russian Orthodox faith for the decision.
However, his behavior has divided hockey fans into two camps: those who fully accept his position, and those who absolutely disagree to accept another person’s belief. Prokhorov himself noted that his refusal to wear a sweater in support of LGBT people was not intended as an insult to representatives of these communities.
“I respect everybody and I respect everybody’s choices. My choice is to stay true to myself and my religion.”
Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov on refusing to wear a rainbow jersey for warm ups during “Pride Night” due to his Russian Orthodox faith.
pic.twitter.com/wCUl8slmRB— Greg Price (@greg_price11) January 18, 2023
“I respect everybody’s choices,” Provorov said. “My choice is to stay true to myself and my religion. That’s all I’m going to say.”
Coach John Tortorella defended Provorov, saying the Russian defenseman “was true to himself and to his religion.”
“It’s one thing I respect about Provy, he’s always true to himself,” Tortorella said.
Meanwhile, some leading media members attacked Provorov. On Wednesday’s edition of “NHL Now” on the NHL Network, senior reporter E.J. Hradek gave Provorov an ultimatum:
@ClayTravis pic.twitter.com/iOiakanEcG
— TJ (@tschultz_5) January 19, 2023
“Ivan Provorov can get on a plane any day he wants and go back to a place where he feels more comfortable, take less money and get on with his life that way if it’s that problematic for him,” Hradek said. “If this is that much of a problem for him, to maybe assimilate into his group of teammates, and in the community and here in this country, that’s OK. Listen, you can feel any way you want. But the beauty is, if it bothers you that much, there’s always a chance to leave, go back to where you feel more comfortable.”
Commentators were outraged by the statement:
Strangely, Provorov has still been labeled “homophobic” for the move, despite saying he respects everybody and everybody’s choices.
LeBrun was most probably not so well aware of the Orthodox belief in Russia as to say so, as Provorov’s statement was true and referred to the traditional beliefs of the Russian Orthodox Christianity, refusing the idea of homosexual relations.
In March 2022, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia gave a sermon after the celebration of the Divine Liturgy at the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow. In his sermon, Kirill noted that those who claim world domination offer so-called “values”, the acceptance or non-acceptance of which is in fact a test of loyalty to this power, “a kind of pass into that “happy” world, the world of excessive consumption, the world of fake “freedom”.
“Do you know what this test is? The test is very simple and at the same time scary — it’s a gay pride parade. The demands made on many to hold a gay pride parade are a test of loyalty to this very powerful world; and we know that if people or countries reject these demands, they do not enter that world, they become strangers to it,” the Patriarch noted.
He added that if humanity recognizes that sin is not a violation of God’s law, if humanity agrees that sin is only one of the variants of human behavior, then human civilization will cease to exist.
“And gay pride parades are designed to demonstrate that sin is just one of the varieties of human behavior,” he stressed.
Coming back to the Provorov’s case, it should be noted that for its part, the NHL released a statement saying players are free to refrain from participation if they choose:
“Hockey is for Everyone is the umbrella initiative under which the League encourages Clubs to celebrate the diversity that exists in their respective markets […] clubs decide whom to celebrate, when and how — with League counsel and support. Players are free to decide which initiatives to support, and we continue to encourage their voices and perspectives on social and cultural issues.”
Anyway, the Russian took part in the game itself and helped his team beat Anaheim with a score of 5:2. Also, despite the accusations, many fans lined up to support Provorov.
Ru-Main, 19.01.2023
Source: Fox News, The Washington Post, Daily Mail
