On a sweltering summer morning in Serbia's capital Belgrade, Vadim Morus, a professional ice skater from Russia, glides across an outdoor rink.

Morus is 1,600 kilometers from his native Moscow, but is beginning to feel at home. He fled Russia with his fiancee in 2022, part of a wave of tens of thousands who came to Serbia after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It's a long way to come, but many chose Belgrade for its ancient cultural and religious ties to Moscow.

"I am helping Serbian colleagues ... train their students," said Morus, 27.