Russia has criticized the decision of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to exclude its athletes from the opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympics in Paris, on July 26, describing it as a violation of the Olympic ideal, writes Reuters.
Russians claim they are being persecuted in the world of sports
''This is, of course, the destruction of the idea of Olympism, this is a violation of the interests of Olympic athletes“, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. ''Of course, this is completely contrary to the entire ideology of the Olympic movement, and this does not paint the IOC in a good light“, Peskov also said.
The athletes from Russia and Belarus, admitted under the neutral flag to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, will not parade on the Seine at the opening ceremony on July 26, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided on Tuesday. The decision is considered logical by the IOC, because the athletes from the two countries compete as neutral individuals and not as a team, a measure imposed as a result of the armed invasion from Ukraine.
Without the national symbols, athletes from the two countries would take part in reduced numbers at the 2024 Olympics: only 12 Russians and 7 Belarusians have so far qualified for the competition in the French capital, out of the 6,000 places already allocated. Olympic body experts estimate that, “according to the most likely scenario“, 36 Russians and 22 Belarusians will manage to qualify for the 2024 Olympics, and the number “maximum” of them could be 55 and 28 respectively, continued the official during a meeting with the press.
Therefore, the presence of Russians and Belarusians is expected to be much lower than at the Toyko 2021 Olympics, in which 330 Russian athletes and 104 Belarusians took part, the IOC official recalled.
