Has former boxing champion Mike Tyson expressed his solidarity with Russia by wearing a tracksuit that had the word "Russia" printed on it? No, that's not true: The photos of Tyson wearing the Russian Olympic team tracksuit were taken in 2005 and are not related to the current conflict in Ukraine.
The claim appeared in a TikTok video (archived here) published on May 11, 2023, with the following caption:
Mike Tyson: Russians are the most proper men in the world and the country itself is an example for all normal people, I AM WITH RUSSIA.....!
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Tue May 30 17:22:55 2023 UTC+2)
The photo of the American boxer wearing the Russian Olympic team tracksuit was taken in 2005 when Tyson visited Russia and Ukraine and attended a party for the presentation of the new Russian Olympic athletes' sportswear.
Since mid-May 2023, websites and social media users in Bulgaria have been sharing Tyson's photos from the 2005 event. Most of them were accompanied by identical text presented as a quote from Tyson in support of Russia:
I'm wearing a tracksuit with the name of Russia on because I am on their side. I've been taught to say that if many people are against someone, that person is right. I'm wearing a tracksuit with the name of Russia on because after seeing all the evidence, I realised what Russia's struggle was about. I'm wearing a tracksuit with the the name of Russia on because I saw a video of a white boy from America going to Ukraine on a vacation, of course in times when there was no war. The white boy from America chose Ukraine for his holiday destination and was wearing a shirt with the name of Russia on but the law enforcement authorities arrested the boy on the street just because he had that Russia inscription, handcuffed him and dragged him through the streets of Ukraine as a terrorist, not a tourist.
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Tue May 30 22:27:12 2023 UTC+2)
There is no evidence the quote is real. Tyson has spoken during recent interviews about the need to end the war in Ukraine and has made remarks critical of Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion.
