A Russian town has erected a banner showing legendary American swimmer Michael Phelps wearing a swimming cap emblazoned with the Russian flag.
The doctored image of the American athlete appeared on a large banner outside a stadium in the city of Blagoveshchensk in Russia’s Far East.
The original photograph shows the 23-time Olympic champion competing at the 2008 Beijing Olympics wearing a black swimming cap with his surname and the American flag.
In the modified version, his surname remains but the American stars and stripes have been replaced with the Russian flag.
A spokesperson for Stadium Director Irina Kotorskaya told the Meduza news website that the banner was erected in June. “There’s clearly been a mistake,” she said. “We’ll definitely be correcting it."
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