The International Olympic Committee (IOC) believes it would be discriminatory to keep Russia out.
Even as the International Olympic Committee (IOC) believes that it would be discriminatory to keep Russia and its ally Belarus out of the 2024 Paris Games, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has a different stance on the issue. According to Zelenskyy, the 2024 Paris Olympics will have to say no the participation of Russian athletes at the mega sporting event.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has made this clear while speaking at a summit if sports administrators from as many as 36 nations across the world. The IOC doesn’t see this stance as welcome, however, as it believes that such a move will only be discriminatory.
IOC wants Russia, Belarus athletes to participate in neutral capacity
Many athletes from Russia have already qualified in a slew of sports categories and it would be best that these athletes from Russia as well as Belarus, be allowed to participate in a neutral capacity, sans their nations’ symbols.
Zelenskyy’s argument is that Russia, which has been carrying out military aggression into, has been killing and terrorizing the people. The Ukraine President stated the Olympics should not have a place for a terrorist nation such as Russia.
The manner in which Russia has been going about terrorizing people cannot be blanketed by the veil of a flag of neutrality, Zelenskyy made his argument clear. He even went on to state that Russia is even staining the white flag of peace with blood, and that the IOC needs to acknowledge this fact.
Zelenskyy, who had jetted off to Britain week had called upon the British Parliament to aid with fighter jets to help battle ‘Russian invaders”.
Zelenskyy refuses to alter stance
The IOC was also reminded that the global sporting organisation had banned Russia and Belarus from sending athletes to any competition in February last. This had come about after Ukraine came under Russian attack.
Though many months have passed, it needs to be noted that the situation in Ukraine has not changed since then, and that is what Zelenskyy wanted to tell the world on his stance against Russian participation in the 2024 Paris Games.