Thomas Bach
The IOC has updated its recommendations to international sports federations regarding Russian and Belarusian athletes, noting that they can return to non-Olympic competitions as neutral athletes in individual events, and only if they do not actively support the war in Ukraine . Now it’s up to those federations to decide if and how to field the athletes again when qualifying for the 2024 Olympics heats up.
The IOC has not taken any decision on the participation of Russian or Belarusian athletes in the Paris Games and will do so “in due course”, according to the IOC President Thomas Bach said Tuesday.
Most international sports federations for Olympic sports banned Russian and Belarusian athletes last year after the IOC recommended it following the invasion of Ukraine.
Bach was asked on Tuesday what had changed in the past 13 months, leading the IOC to update its recommendations.
He reiterated previous comments that after the invasion and prior to the February 2022 initial recommendations, some governments refused to issue visas to Russians and Belarusians, and other governments threatened to withdraw funding from athletes competing against Russians and Belarusians. He also said the safety of Russians and Belarusians competing was at risk at this time.
Bach said that Russians and Belarusians have competed in sports like tennis, NHL and soccer (while not representing their countries) and that “it’s already working”.
“The question that has been discussed in many of these consultations is why shouldn’t what is possible in all these sports also be possible in swimming, table tennis, wrestling or other sports?” said Bach.
Bach then read a section of comments made by a United Nations commissioner on cultural rights last week.
“We need to start by agreeing that these states [Russia and Belarus] are excluded,” Bach read in part. “The problem is what happens to individuals. … The blanket ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes and artists cannot be continued. It is a blatant violation of human rights. The idea is not that we recognize human rights as people who are like us and with whom we agree in our actions and behavior. The idea is that everyone has the right not to be discriminated against because of their passport.”
The story goes on
Tuesday’s IOC recommendations included not allowing “teams of athletes” from Russia and Belarus to return.
If Russia continues to be banned from team sports and team events, it could further affect 2024 Olympic qualification.
The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) recently set an April 28 deadline to decide whether Russia should be allowed to participate in a men’s Olympic qualifying tournament. In women’s basketball, the draw for a European Olympic qualifying tournament has already been made without Russia.
In gymnastics, the ban has been extended for so long that Russian gymnasts cannot qualify for men’s and women’s team competitions at the Paris Games under current rules, but can still qualify for individual competitions if the ban is lifted.
Gymnasts from Russia won the men’s and women’s team titles in Tokyo, where Russians competed in all sports for the Russian Olympic Committee, not Russia, in a bid to punish the country’s doping violations. There were no Russian flags or anthems, conditions the IOC also recommends for any return from the current ban on the war in Ukraine.
Seb Coethe president of World Athletics said last week that Russian and Belarusian athletes will remain banned from athletics for the “foreseeable future”.
World Aquatics, the international governing body for swimming, diving and water polo, said following the IOC’s updated recommendations that it will continue to “consider developments affecting the situation” of Russian and Belarusian athletes and that “further updates will be provided if this is appropriate”.
The IOC sanctions against Russia and Belarus and their governments remain in effect, including a ban on holding international competitions in those countries.
On Monday, Ukraine’s sports minister said in a statement that Ukraine “strongly urges” that Russian and Belarusian athletes remain banned.
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The IOC recommends how athletes from Russia and Belarus can return as neutral players who originally appeared on NBCSports.com
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