MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin mentioned on Thursday (Dec 14) he supported Russians competing on the 2024 Paris Summer season Olympics however that the nation ought to ponder whether or not it ought to compete if the occasion is designed to painting Russian sport as “dying”.
The Worldwide Olympic Committee final week mentioned Russians and Belarusians who qualify of their sport for the Paris Video games can participate as neutrals with out flags, emblems or anthems.
Russians and Belarusians had initially been banned from competing internationally following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine final 12 months, for which Belarus has been used as a staging floor.
Talking at his annual year-end press convention, Putin mentioned that whereas he was in favour of Russians competing on the Video games, an extra evaluation was wanted of what the impartial standing would imply for the nation’s athletes.
“They’ve been coaching for years… and that is why I supported our athletes going to such competitions, however we nonetheless have to fastidiously analyse the situations the IOC has put ahead,” Putin mentioned.
“If the IOC’s synthetic situations are designed to chop off one of the best Russian athletes and painting on the Olympics that Russian sport is dying, then it is advisable to resolve whether or not to go there in any respect,” Putin mentioned.
The IOC mentioned that impartial athletes will compete solely in particular person sports activities and no groups for the 2 nations will probably be allowed. Athletes who actively assist the struggle in Ukraine usually are not eligible, nor are these contracted to the Russian or Belarusian army.
Russia has vigorously protested the restrictions in opposition to its athletes, arguing that they go in opposition to the spirit of the Video games.
“The whole lot that worldwide officers do in relation to Russian sports activities is a whole contradiction and distortion of the concepts of Pierre de Coubertin,” Putin mentioned, referring to the founding father of the Olympic motion.
“In the event that they proceed to behave in the identical approach, they’ll bury the Olympic motion.”
Russian athletes have taken half in successive Olympics with out their flag or anthem within the wake of main doping scandals.
Throughout the Chilly Warfare, the US boycotted the 1980 Moscow Olympics over the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, and the Soviet Union and its allies retaliated with a boycott of the 1984 Video games in Los Angeles.