Spectators were kicked out of the World Judo Championship because of the St. George ribbon
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The International Judo Federation announced on May 10 that it removed three spectators from the World Judo Championship in Doha after they refused to remove the St. George’s ribbon from their clothes. It is prohibited in a number of European countries. Ukraine considers it a symbol of aggression.
In the end, the International Judo Federation allowed Russian and Belarusian judokas to participate in the championships in a neutral status. 17 individual Russian and Belarusian athletes were admitted to the championship in Qatar. According to the Ukrainian mass media, at least seven judokas from the list represent the army club CSKA, and some are recognized as servicemen of the Russian army.
In response to the decision of the international federation, the Ukrainian judo team decided to boycott the competition.
- Russian and Belarusian athletes were suspended from international competitions in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In March, the IOC recommended admitting them to the competition in a neutral status, provided that they did not speak out in support of the war and were not connected to the army. This decision provoked sharp criticism in Ukraine and a number of other countries.
- International federations for various sports are autonomous in making decisions about whether Russians and Belarusians will be allowed to compete or not. In particular, the ban continues to apply in almost all team sports.
- St. George’s ribbon as a symbol of victory in the Great Patriotic War began to be used in Russia from the mid-2000s and gradually turned into a symbol of loyalty to the Kremlin’s policy. The orange-black ribbon was also widely used as a symbol by the Donbass separatists.
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