Geneva (AFP) – Some Russian athletes will be allowed to compete in the 2024 Paris Olympics, The International Olympic Committee said Friday, in a decision that removed the option of a comprehensive ban due to the invasion of Ukraine.
The IOC’s decision confirmed moves it began a year ago to reintegrate Russia and its military ally Belarus into world sport, and nine months later. Urging sports administrative bodies To consider ways to allow individual athletes to compete.
Although the IOC’s official position was expected, the timing surprised some Olympic observers after reports last week in Paris indicated the long-awaited decision would come in March.
It remains up to each sport’s governing body, which runs its own Olympic competitions, to assess and enforce the neutral status of individual athletes who did not actively support the war and were not contracted to the military or state security agencies.
Eight Russians and three Belarusians are among 4,600 athletes worldwide who have so far qualified for the Summer Games, the International Olympic Committee said on Friday. More than 60 Ukrainian athletes have qualified so far, and the International Olympic Committee estimates the country will eventually send about 150 athletes.
Russia sends 335 athletes to the Tokyo 2021 Olympics Winning 20 golds out of 71 medals – But only dozens are likely to compete in Paris as individuals. Russia is still banned from playing team sports.
“Only a very limited number of athletes will qualify through (the governing bodies’) current qualification systems,” the IOC said in a statement.
Those granted neutral status must compete without their national identity – flag, anthem or colours. The light blue uniform was commissioned by the International Gymnastics Federation.
The Russian government and sports officials have often insisted that any restrictions on its athletes are politicized and unacceptable.
Athletes and officials from Ukraineincluding President Volodymyr Zelensky, repeatedly He urged the International Olympic Committee to expel Russia Belarus was completely excluded from the Olympic Games due to the war started by Russia. “It is clear that any neutral flag of Russian athletes is stained with blood,” Zelensky said in January.
They said that any Olympic medal won by the Russians would be used as propaganda by the country. Russian medal winners are often associated with military sports clubs such as CSKA which is linked to the army.
Ukraine’s European allies tried to put pressure on Olympic officials and athletes, and the Swedish Sports Minister said the IOC’s decision was “disturbing and very regrettable.”
“Neutral science is an illusion and this contributes to the normalization of Russia’s war of aggression!” Minister of Sports Written by Jacob Forsmed On social media.
The IAAF has taken the toughest stance towards Russian athletes, excluding them from international competition since the invasion began in February 2022.
The International Olympic Committee and its president, Thomas Bach, also urged Russia to be excluded from the sport when the war began days after the closing ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Beijing, and then softened their stance over the past year as the Paris qualifiers approached.
Paris is the fifth consecutive Olympics in which Russia and its athletes have faced calls for a ban since the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, which were Bach’s first as IOC president. In Paris, Russian athletes will compete as neutral individual athletes – using the French abbreviation AIN – in the fourth straight games where the simple team name “Russia” was not permitted.
Bach has repeatedly cited the war in Ukraine as among dozens of ongoing conflicts, and that athletes around the world and especially from Africa do not want their fellow competitors to be punished by their government’s actions.
Last year, Bach pointed out the seriousness of Russia’s violation of the UN-backed Olympic Truce that was in place during the Winter and Paralympic Games in China.
Fresh Olympic Truce in Paris It was approved this month at the United Nations in New York, despite receiving just 118 votes from the 193 member states. Russia and Syria abstained from voting.
Russian athletes competing in Paris will be invited directly by the IOC and their sport’s governing body, and will not be affected by the current ban. Comment from their National Olympic Committee.
This was largely a cosmetic penalty as it was imposed because the ROC included regional sports councils from occupied eastern Ukraine as members. No action was taken in 2016 when Russian Olympic officials took a similar step after the illegal annexation of Crimea.
The International Olympic Committee has allocated $7.5 million for sport in Ukraine, and said on Friday that it had “once again confirmed the firm commitment of the entire Olympic movement to assist Ukrainian athletes in every possible way.”
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AP Olympiad: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
The decision by the International Olympic Committee to allow Russian athletes to compete in the Paris Olympics as neutrals has sparked both controversy and debate within the sporting world. Following years of doping scandals and allegations of state-sponsored doping, the IOC’s decision has raised questions about the fairness and integrity of competition. However, the IOC’s stance on allowing Russian athletes to participate as neutrals has also been praised as a way to promote clean and fair competition, ensuring that individual athletes are not unfairly punished for their country’s past transgressions. This decision has brought into focus the complex and multi-faceted issues surrounding doping in sports, and the role of national oversight and accountability in ensuring a level playing field for all athletes.