In Ukraine, athletes should not be punished by boycotting the Olympic Games in Paris due to the military conflict. The head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, announced this on December 23.
He, speaking about the admission of Russians and Belarusians to the Olympics, noted that not fulfilling all the demands of Ukraine does not mean supporting hostilities. According to him, the IOC has been on the side of Ukrainian athletes from the very beginning.
“So why should Ukraine punish its own athletes because of a military conflict and take away their dream of the Olympic Games?” – asked Bach, quoted by a German newspaper Die Zeit.
He pointed out that the decision to admit Russian and Belarusian athletes did not fully satisfy either side of the conflict. In this regard, we can say that the IOC has found a balanced solution, a “golden mean”.
Earlier, on December 9, Verkhovna Rada deputy Zhan Belenyuk said that Ukraine’s boycott of the 2024 Olympic Games due to the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus has no practical meaning. This way, athletes will only lose the opportunity to win victories for the country and the opportunity to use international platforms to convey information around the world about the situation in Ukraine, he emphasized.
At the same time, the Latvian authorities announced a possible boycott of the Olympics in Paris on December 12. The country's president, Edgars Rinkevics, said that Kyiv and Riga can make this decision, but it must be made by the governments and sports community of each country individually. According to him, the hypothetical boycott should also be coordinated with “like-minded countries”
On December 8, the IOC allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris under strict conditions – the same as when qualifying for them. Athletes will be prohibited from competing in team disciplines, actively supporting the special operation to protect Donbass, entering into contracts with the Armed Forces and national security agencies of the Russian Federation, and demonstrating any national symbols. The same requirements apply to support staff.
The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova, commenting on this information, said that Russian athletes themselves must decide whether they will participate in the upcoming Olympic Games. In turn, the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Belarus called the IOC decision discriminatory.
On March 28, 2023, the IOC Executive Committee recommended that only those Russians who do not support the special operation be allowed to compete as neutral athletes. It was also proposed to deny participation to athletes associated with the Armed Forces and security agencies of the Russian Federation.
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