Africa-Press – Eritrea. The International Olympic Committee’s executive board has recommended sports federations to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials from competing in events following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The IOC said the executive board made the decision “in order to protect the integrity of global sports competitions and for the safety of all the participants” and that the body was acting with a “heavy heart”.
The Russian Olympic Committee categorically disagreed with the IOC, saying the decision “contradicts both the regulatory documents of the IOC and the (Olympic) Charter”.
“As a first step, we consider it necessary to send requests to international federations for an official response on the status of Russian athletes and their rights to participate in international competitions due to the fact that it is the… federations that have the authority to admit athletes to international competitions in the respective sport,” the ROC said in a statement.
“For its part, the ROC intends to consistently uphold the rights and interests of Russian athletes and provide all necessary assistance to our national federations to challenge discriminatory decisions of the relevant international federations.”
The statement from IOC comes shortly before the Winter Paralympics starts in Beijing on Friday. The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) will meet on Wednesday to discuss Russia ahead of the Games. Read full story
Following IOC’s statement, soccer governing bodies Fifa and Uefa also suspended Russia’s national and club teams from all competitions until further notice.
Sports bodies across the world have already moved against Russia by refusing to host or play against teams from the country.
The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee and its athletes’ advisory council sought a complete ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials effectively immediately and inclusive of the Beijing Paralympics.
“As the world watches in horror while Russia brazenly attacks the innocent people and athletes of Ukraine, this is the only acceptable action to be taken until peace has been restored,” the USOPC said in a statement late on Monday.
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