The President of the IOC reacted to Ukraine’s readiness to boycott the Olympics due to the participation of Russians and Belarusians
The President of the IOC reacted to Ukraine’s readiness to boycott the Olympics due to the participation of Russians and Belarusians
Thomas Bach
The President of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, spoke about the possible return of Russian athletes to world sports and stated that the mission of the IOC is to “unite all athletes from around the world, this is a special symbol of the Olympics”, and a possible boycott of Ukraine “does not correspond to our mission”, according to Spiegel. writes
“It does not correspond to the values and mission of the Olympic Charter – athletes will be excluded because of their passports,” Bach said on the sidelines of the World Luge Championship in Oberhof on January 27. “Possibly,” Bach said, “Russian and Belarusian athletes could compete under a neutral flag” at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
The mission of the International Olympic Committee is to “unite all athletes from all over the world, this is a special symbol of the Olympics,” Bach said.
A possible boycott of Ukraine, about which Minister of Sports Vadym Gutzait warned on Facebook, in this case “does not correspond to our mission. We know the point of view of Ukraine, which not only wants to isolate Russia as a state, but also wants to completely isolate all Russians,” Bach said.
As indicated, Bach repeatedly emphasized the three-fold approach in considering the topic of Ukraine. Sanctions against Russia, namely the lack of identification, the ban on holding international competitions on Russian territory and the lack of invitation of government representatives, must be maintained, solidarity with Ukrainian athletes remains, but an individual athlete must not be discriminated against by exclusion, “even if the countries are in conflict “.
In general, however, according to Bach, the return of Russian and Belarusian athletes is still “at the consultation stage.”
Sports Minister Vadym Gutzait said that Ukraine may refuse to participate in the 2024 Olympics, which should be held in Paris, due to the admission of Russian and Belarusian athletes to the competition.
This is how he reacted to the statement of the IOC, in which it was assumed that the Russians and Belarusians will be able to perform at the Olympics in Paris under a neutral flag.
President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized the initiatives of the IOC and emphasized that “any neutral flag of Russian athletes is stained with blood.” Zelensky invited the head of the IOC, Thomas Bach, who is trying to “draw representatives of the terrorist state into world sports”, to Bachmut.
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