Athletes from Russia and Belarus have been authorized by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to compete under a neutral flag at the Winter Paralympic Games starting next Friday (4). According to the IPC decision, announced after a meeting this Wednesday (2), the competitors will be called “neutral Paralympic athletes” and, in case of a podium, the Paralympic anthem will be played. The two countries will also not appear on the medal table. The measures were adopted after the Russian military invasion of Ukraine, which began at dawn last Thursday (24).
“The IPC and the Paralympic Movement in general are very concerned about the gross violation of the Olympic Truce by the Russian and Belarusian governments in the days leading up to the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games The IPC Governing Board is united in its condemnation of these actions and agreed that they cannot go unnoticed or untreated,” said Brazilian Andrew Parson, president of the IPC.
The Olympic truce began on February 4 – seven days before the start of the Beijing Winter Games – and does not end until March 20, seven days after the end of the Paralympics.
“It is disappointing for athletes and all stakeholders at the Games that, with 48 hours to go until the Opening Ceremony, the conversation is not about sport but about global politics,” lamented IPC Athletes Council President Jitske Visser.
Last Monday (28), the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was stricter towards Russian and Belarusian athletesrecommending that sports federations prohibit their participation in international sports competitions.
The Beijing Paralympics will bring together 650 athletes from 48 countries until March 13, the last day of competition. Brazil will be represented by six athletes, most of them from cross country: Aline Rocha, Cristian Ribera, Guilherme Cruz Rocha, Robelson Moreira Lula and Wesley dos Santos. André Barbieri will compete in the snowboard.
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