Ukraine’s sports minister calls for solidarity from the international community
Ukraine’s sports minister Vadym Guttsait has said that allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in the Paris 2024 Olympics would be “irresponsible” and “immoral” in the light of the ongoing invasion of Ukraine by Russia. He urged the international community to show solidarity with Ukraine and support a ban on the two countries from the Olympic Games.
Guttsait made his remarks at a press conference in Kyiv on Wednesday, where he also announced that Ukraine would boycott the Olympics if the ban was not upheld. He said that Ukraine had the support of 36 countries, including the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Germany, and Canada, who had signed a joint statement calling for the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes from the Games.
He said that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) should not compromise on the Olympic values of peace, friendship, and fair play, and should not allow the two countries to use sport as a tool for propaganda and aggression. He also criticized the IOC’s suggestion of allowing the athletes to compete under a neutral flag, saying that it would not change the fact that they represented the aggressor state.
Russia and Belarus defend their right to compete
Russia and Belarus have both rejected the calls for a ban, saying that they have the right to compete in the Olympics and that sport should not be politicized. They have accused the countries that support the ban of trying to destroy the unity of the Olympic movement and using sport as a means of pressure to resolve political issues.
Russia’s sports minister Oleg Matytsin said that the calls for a ban were unacceptable and that Russia would defend its interests in the international sports arena. He said that Russia had complied with all the anti-doping requirements and that its athletes had nothing to do with the conflict in Ukraine.
Belarus’s sports minister Sergei Kovalchuk said that Belarus had always been a reliable partner of the IOC and that its athletes had earned their right to compete in the Olympics through their hard work and achievements. He said that Belarus had never interfered in the internal affairs of other countries and that it respected the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s president appeals to the IOC
Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has also appealed to the IOC to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from the Olympics, saying that their participation would be a mockery of the Olympic ideals and an insult to the victims of the invasion. He said that Russia had killed and terrorized thousands of Ukrainians and that it had no place at the Olympic competitions.
Zelensky spoke to the IOC president Thomas Bach via a video call on Tuesday, where he asked him to reconsider the IOC’s position and to stand on the side of justice and humanity. He said that the IOC had the power and the responsibility to make a difference and to send a clear message to the world that aggression and violence would not be tolerated.
He also thanked the countries that had expressed their support for Ukraine and their opposition to the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the Olympics. He said that he hoped that more countries would join the initiative and that the IOC would listen to the voice of the majority.
