RRiders from Russia and Belarus will not take part in the 2024 Paris Olympics. This was announced by the World Equestrian Federation FEI. The reason for this is that the qualification phase for the equestrian games, which will take place in front of the Palace of Versailles, ends on December 31, 2023. However, athletes from the two countries will only be allowed to take part in international tournaments again from February 1, 2024.
At the beginning of March 2022, after the start of the Russian war of aggression on Ukraine, the association decided on so-called protective measures for Ukrainian athletes. Since then, Russians and Belarusians have no longer been allowed to take part in international tournaments. The FEI lifted these measures in November. However, riders could or can only collect points for the Olympic qualification system in a phase between January 1, 2023 and December 31, 2023, according to the association's announcement.
The board sets criteria
The International Olympic Committee recently declared that individual athletes from Russia and Belarus would be eligible to compete in the Summer Games in France's capital under a neutral flag despite the war, provided they meet the qualification conditions.
The FEI Board has now set its criteria for the return of the Russians and Belarusians. They can therefore return to international equestrian sport as neutral athletes from February 2024 at the earliest. The prerequisite for this is that they do not actively support the war in Ukraine and that there is no contract between them and the Russian or Belarusian military or any other national security authority.
They must also commit to and comply with the rules and regulations of the FEI, including the anti-doping rules for humans and horses. You must declare this to the association in writing. According to the FEI, any form of verbal, non-verbal or written expression is also considered active support for the war and therefore an exclusion criterion. The criteria also apply to support staff, horse owners and officials, such as judges, from the two countries.
The FEI sanction that no international equestrian tournaments are allowed to take place in Russia and Belarus remains in place.
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