Moscow, Russia denounced on Friday a campaign of “neutralization“towards its best athletes, whose participation in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games is subject to criteria “humiliating” of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), according to Moscow.
He COI last week authorized the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the Paris Olympics 2024 (July 26 to August 11) under various conditions: participate under a neutral flag, outside of team events, if they have not actively supported the Russian offensive in Ukraine and if they pass the classification processes.
At this moment only 11 athletes meet these criteriaeight Russians and three Belarusians, in front of a Ukrainian delegation that would already number 60, the COI during his announcement.
“With its invented criteria and parameters that not only go against the Olympic Charter but also completely devalue its principleshe COI launched an intentional campaign of ‘neutralization’ of our athletes,” the president of the Russian Olympic Committee reacted on Friday, Stanislav Pozdniakovduring his annual press conference.
“These artificial and politically motivated conditions eliminate the overwhelming majority of our best athletes and They place those who classify in a situation of inequalityexcluding honest competition,” he said.
In addition, the number of 11 eligible athletes “advanced by the IOC is humiliating“Pozdniakov insisted, highlighting that “thousands of athletes” had “been physically deprived of their sleep.”
He also called Russian athletes eligible according to the criteria of the COI to “carefully examine all the nuances of the proposed conditions”, so as not to become “hostages to the interests of others“, without giving more details.
Putin’s words from Russia:
On Thursday, during his annual press conference, the Russian president Vladimir Putin He also criticized the decision of the COI, assessing that the institution assumed the risk of “bury the olympic movement“.
He also added wanting “carefully analyze the conditions“before making a final decision on the participation or boycott of Russian athletes in the Paris Games.
Source: AFP
