Short-track cyclist Ivan Posashkov will compete at the Olympics on February 14 at a distance of 1.5 thousand meters.

On Saturday, February 14, at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, the next start of short-track cyclist Ivan Posashkov will take place. The athlete will take to the ice in the quarterfinals at a distance of 1.5 thousand meters, the start of the races is scheduled for 22:15 Moscow time. If the round is successful, he will continue to compete in the semifinals, which will start at 23:44 Moscow time. The Russian is competing at the 2026 Games in a neutral status, without national symbols.

This will be his second Olympic start after the 1,000 m race on February 10. Then Posashkov showed a result of 1 minute 28.64 seconds and finished fourth in the qualifying race, but was later disqualified for violating the rules of wrestling with Chinese Lin Xiaojun. The winner of the qualification was the Dutchman Jens van't Wout, the Latvian Renis Berzins showed the second time, Lin Xiaojun became the third.

Further rounds at a distance of 1.5 thousand meters are scheduled for the night of February 14-15. On Sunday, February 15, at 00:27 Moscow time, the final B will take place, and at 00:34 Moscow time, the final A. A Russian athlete will be able to participate in them, provided that the previous stages are successfully completed.

Russian short-track cyclist Ivan Posashkov will compete at the 2026 Olympics: who is he and what is he known for

The Russian athlete provided the country with a ticket in the short track for the 2026 Games

Ivan Posashkov was born on August 6, 2004 and grew up in St. Petersburg. As a child, he practiced speed skating, and then switched to short track, inspired by Victor Ahn's performances at the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi. The athlete was trained at the Academy of Ice Sports "Dynamo Saint Petersburg", after school he entered the National State University of Physical Culture, Sports and Health named after P.F. Lesgaft.

At the age of 21, Posashkov became a master of sports of Russia and a master of sports of Russia of international class. He is the champion of Russia in the 5,000 m relay (December 2025), the bronze medalist of the Russian Championship in the 1,000 m, the winner and prize—winner of the Russian Cup stages, as well as the gold medalist of the VIII All–Russian Winter Universiade - 2024 in the 5,000 m relay. In the 2025/26 season, he made his international debut as part of the Olympic selection process and noted that his first experience at this level was an important stage in his professional growth.