Decisions regarding the participation of players from both nations are ‘reserved’
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it will not send official invitations to Russia and its ally Belarus for the 2024 Paris Olympics after the latter invaded Ukraine.
The organization, however, maintained its reservations about Russian and Belarusian athletes competing in the Paris Games and the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo.
“We will send official invitations to 203 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) for the Paris Games on the 26th of this month,” the IOC said on Wednesday (local time), “with the exception of Russia and Belarus.”
In February of last year, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the IOC recommended to sport’s International Federations (IFs) that Russian-Belarusian athletes be banned from international competition.
However, in March of this year, the IOC’s Executive Board authorized athletes from both countries to compete in individual and neutral country qualifying events for the Paris Olympics. This marks the first time in a year that international sports sanctions have been lifted.
However, Russian and Belarusian athletes who are members of the armed forces, central intelligence services, or on teams affiliated with either organization will not be able to compete in Olympic qualifying events. They were also banned from competing in team and individual events.
While allowing the team to compete in the Olympic qualifiers, the IOC reserved its decision on whether Russian-Belarusian athletes would compete in the Paris Games, saying it would decide at a later date.
The IOC’s decision was met with a fierce backlash from Ukraine. The Ukrainian government has threatened to boycott the Games if its athletes are forced to compete with the Russian-Belarusian athletes in the qualifiers.
This is why the IOC announced today that it will exclude the two countries from the official invitation.
“The IOC’s current advice to IFs and sporting event organizers regarding the participation of athletes holding Russian and Belarusian passports in international competitions does not relate to the participation of athletes or support staff holding passports from these two countries in the Paris Olympic Games or the Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Olympic Games,” the IOC said.
“Regardless of the outcome of the Olympic qualification events, the IOC will make a decision at the appropriate time and in its sole discretion.”
Russia was banned from the 2018 PyeongChang and 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics due to sanctions for doping violations. 한국야동 It competed as a neutral country in Pyeongchang as the Olympic Athletes of Russia (OAR) and in Beijing as the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC).