Fans are showing an outpouring of support for Ivan Provorov, the Philadelphia Flyers defensemen who has been under a barrage of media attacks after he abstained from wearing a Pride Night themed warmup jersey due to his religious beIiefs earlier this week.
After news came out that he did not participate in wearing the LGBTQ+ rainbow themed attire, the press immediately swarmed him post-game to obtain the reasons as to why.
I respect everyone, said Provorov, I respect everybody’s choices. My choice is to stay to true to myseIf and my religion.
Ivan Provorov is a Christian and member of the Russian Orthodox Church, which holds a traditional stance on the topics of gender and sexuaIity.
The story continued to gain traction when head coach John Tortorella later defended Provorov’s choice to stand by his faith.