Ukraine’s Sports Minister warned that the country could boycott the Paris Olympics next year if athletes from Russia and Belarus are allowed to participate.
Ukraine’s Sports Minister Vadym Goutzeit on January 26 criticized the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for “unacceptable” behavior, after the organization announced it was looking for a plan for Russian athletes to participate in the Olympics. Paris 2024. The position of the IOC also met with opposition from the UK and Denmark.
“We remain in the same position: As long as the hostilities continue in Ukraine, athletes from Russia and Belarus cannot participate in international competitions. If we are not heard, I do not rule out the possibility of bleaching.” vegetarian and refused to participate in the Olympics,” Goutzeit said.
The IOC said on January 25 that it wanted to study more options to allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to participate in the Olympics as a neutral, saying that athletes should not be banned from competing “just because of a passport”.
Russian athletes carry the flag of the Russian Olympic Committee in place of the national flag during the Winter Olympics in Beijing in February 2021. Photo: AP.
After the announcement of the IOC, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) has invited the two countries Russia and Belarus to send athletes to participate in the Asian Games 2023. This option can help athletes from both countries achieve enough international points and attend the Paris Olympics next year.
British Culture Secretary Michelle Donelan said the IOC’s stance was “far from the reality of the war of the Ukrainian people”. She reiterated that IOC President Thomas Bach less than a year ago strongly condemned Russia for “breaking its commitment to Olympic peace”.
Hans Natorp, Chairman of the National Olympic Committee of Denmark, also said that the prospect of Russia and Belarus participating in international sports competitions is “unacceptable” in the context of the escalating hostilities in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo supported the Russian athlete to attend the Olympics as a neutral.
“I think this is a matter of sports and we can’t take away the right of athletes to compete. I support allowing them to compete but not carrying the Russian flag,” she told the radio. France 2.
Name (Theo AFP)