<sod >â Asked whether athletes or spectators who protest against the law could face action, Mr Putin said: âProtest actions and propaganda are two slightly different things.< eod>< sod > " Asked whether athletes or spectators who protest against the law could face action, Mr Putin said: "Protest actions and propaganda are two slightly different things. Similar, but from a legal point of view, protesting against a law is not the same as propaganda for homosexuality or child abuse." Mr Putin has also been forced to deny allegations of corruption surrounding the Sochi Winter Olympics.< eod>