(Kyiv) The decision of the International Olympic Committee to admit Russian and Belarusian athletes under neutral banner to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games is “wrong” and “encourages” Moscow and Minsk to continue the attack against Ukraine, denounced on Saturday Kyiv.
“The members of the IOC Executive Board who made this decision take responsibility for encouraging Russia and Belarus to continue their armed aggression against Ukraine,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said.
“There is no doubt that the Kremlin will use every Russian and Belarusian athlete as a weapon in its propaganda war,” he added in a statement.
“Moscow will not wave white and neutral flags during competitions, as the IOC suggests, but will demonstrate the triumph of its ability to absolve itself of responsibility for the largest armed conflict in Europe since the Second World War,” continues Ukrainian diplomacy.
“The IOC plans to allow athletes to compete in international sports arenas who not only support the murders of Ukrainian women and children, but who are also probably directly involved in these crimes,” assured Ukrainian diplomacy.
Ending nine months of suspense, the IOC authorized Russian and Belarusian athletes on Friday to participate under a neutral banner in the Paris Games, but imposed strict conditions on their integration.
Only “neutral individual” athletes will be affected who have been able to clear the qualification hurdle, do not actively support the war in Ukraine, and are not under contract with either the army or national security agencies.
Eleven of them currently meet these criteria, eight Russians and three Belarusians, said the IOC, suggesting a very thin delegation.
These conditions of participation were denounced by Russia, which deemed them “discriminatory” and going “against sporting principles”, through the voice of Russian Sports Minister Oleg Matytsin, quoted by the TASS news agency.
He said, however, that Russian athletes granted the right to compete in the 2024 Olympics “will probably participate.”
At the same time, around sixty Ukrainians have already qualified for the Paris Games (July 26 to August 11, 2024).
The prospect of seeing an absent or very weakened Ukrainian delegation has long worried the Olympic body, and would have made the presence of Russian athletes more politically delicate, even without an anthem or flag.
