Ukraine’s parliament calls on IOC to ban Russia and Belarus from Olympic Games
The parliament demands to ban the participation of the Russian Federation and Belarus in the Olympics in Paris (Photo:Laurent Gillieron/File Photo/REUTERS)
The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has supported an appeal to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) demanding that athletes from the Russian Federation and Belarus be banned from participating in the Olympics, MP Oleksiy Honcharenko wrote on Telegram on Feb. 6.
“As long as the war continues and Russia is destroying the Ukrainian people, the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes will look like supporting the war and appeasing the aggressor,” he wrote.
In addition to the IOC, the parliament also addressed the parliaments of the world, national Olympic committees and international sports federations.
Earlier, the IOC stated that they are ready to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete under certain conditions, in particular if they will perform under a neutral flag.
On Jan. 27, German newspaper Der Spiegel quoted IOC President Thomas Bach as saying that he wants to “to bring together athletes from all over the world”, in particular Russians, at the 2024 Olympics.
“It is not in line with the values and mission of the Olympic Charter to exclude athletes because of their passport,” Bach said.
Ukrainian Sports Minister Vadym Huttsait doesn’t rule out Ukraine will boycott the Olympic Games if Russian and Belarusian sportspersons are allowed to compete there.
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