MOSCOW, March 14 Olympic champion in cross-country skiing Veronika Stepanova called a strong step departure of Eivind Vatterdahl from the post of deputy board member of the Norwegian Olympic Committee (NIF) in protest against sanctions against Russian and Belarusian athletes. participation in international competitions.
"I did not have the happiness of personally knowing Mr. Vatterdahl, but I am glad to see that not everyone in the West, in particular in Norway, supports the illegal and immoral decision to exclude Russian athletes from international competitions solely on the basis of the fact that we are Russians. Your resignation as a member of the Norwegian Olympic Committee in protest against our exclusion, Mr. Waterdahl, is a strong step, I appreciate it", Stepanova wrote in her telegram channel.
At the end of February, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended that international sports federations prevent Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating in international competitions due to the situation around Russia and Ukraine. A number of international federations excluded Russians and Belarusians from competitions under their auspices, in particular, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) banned them from participating in the Beijing Paralympics. Other federations allowed athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete in a neutral status.