While the International Olympic Committee (IOC) continues to pause On the issue of the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus in the 2024 Games, French President Emmanuel Macron made a number of statements that leave no doubt — if Russians and Belarusians are allowed into Paris, it will be only with the status of “second-class citizens.” What is “freedom, equality, brotherhood” in the Olympic version — this is discussed in the material of the Sport correspondent.
There is less than a year left before the start of the Summer Olympic Games in Paris, and representatives of three countries have still not received invitations to this event from the International Olympic Committee. Everything is clear with Guatemala — the National Olympic Committee of this country is temporarily suspended from membership in the IOC due to government interference in its activities. This implies the impossibility of athletes from this country participating in the Olympics.
Likewise, athletes from Russia and Belarus are not invited to the 2024 Summer Games, although the status of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) and the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Belarus has not changed. No restrictions or sanctions have been imposed on these organizations. And yet, on July 26 — exactly a year before the start of the Paris Olympics, when all countries received a letter from the IOC — the mailboxes of the ROC and NOC of Belarus were empty.
Moreover, about six months before this date, IOC President Thomas Bach regularly appeared in the information space with theses that seemed to indicate that the IOC was not against the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the Olympic Games. Human rights, the position of the UN special rapporteur, the inadmissibility of discrimination in the provisions of the Olympic Charter — the leader of the international Olympic movement spoke about all this when he strongly hinted that Russian and Belarusian athletes should be allowed to compete at the Games in Paris.
< br>However, this has not been announced yet. Although most summer sports have now returned Russian and Belarusian athletes to the international arena or at least made decisions in this regard. Of course, inertia and the desire to look back at each other are properties inherent in all officials. And for this reason, from a document on paper to the actual appearance of an athlete from Russia and Belarus on the site (platform, carpet, etc.) is a long way. But, nevertheless, among the leaders of major federations, only the President of the World Athletics Association (World Athletics) Sebastian Coe holds the line, not allowing Russians and Belarusians to compete even in a neutral status. And he will keep it, apparently, until the last.
Well, in general, as reported at a meeting of the board of the Russian Ministry of Sports this week, in 26 out of 39 Olympic sports our athletes are allowed to compete. Eight of them take part: wrestling, rowing, cycling, fencing, taekwondo, judo, tennis and boxing. In the rest, the admission criteria have either not yet been developed, or have been announced, but are too stringent for Russian athletes to meet them. As Deputy Minister of Sports of the Russian Federation Alexey Morozov said at the same event, there is an understanding that Russians will not be able to compete in most sports at the Olympics, but the department is working on those disciplines where there is a chance to take part.
But the results of this work are quite strange. The IOC stands for the supremacy of human rights and the Olympic Charter, that is, they are verbally ready to see Russians and Belarusians at the Olympics in Paris. In our country, despite some harsh statements, a balanced position generally also prevails — no one refuses to participate in international tournaments and does not prohibit athletes from doing so. So the Ministry of Sports once again spoke out that on the Russian side no one will lower the barrier in front of the athletes on the road to France. And yet this road is still closed — there is silence on the other side at the checkpoint. Although there are enough opportunities to make the decision that everyone is waiting for — for example, the IOC Executive Committee is meeting this week.
Can negotiations still continue between the Russian side and the IOC? Undoubtedly. And it is clear what they are discussing there — admission criteria, which our leaders have more than once called discriminatory and politicized. Moreover, it is clear that neutral status in itself is not a red line for our sports authorities. Russian athletes have already performed without a flag and anthem at the last three Olympics, and even now they participate in international tournaments in this format.
Here are the criteria for non-admission in relation to the army and security services, which the IOC rolled out in March — this is more complicated. Some Russian athletes can go to the Olympics, others, who differ from the former only in their club affiliation, cannot. This is a direct path to a split in our sports community. But perhaps this is also a matter for discussion. The IOC, which insists on the same criteria for both athletes and officials, did not suspend Elena Isinbayeva from work. Although there are no fools in Lausanne and they understand what it’s like to go to events and meetings with state leadership in military uniform. Even if you call it a “nominal attitude towards the army” five times later, it still won’t become that.
There is another reason why the IOC is dragging its feet. True, they don’t really say it out loud, and if this happens, it’s in encrypted form. The IOC is “monitoring the situation in the field.” Bach has hinted at this more than once, speaking about the unpredictable future. However, it is not clear what exactly he is waiting for. It is obvious that the West will not lift anti-Russian sanctions in the near future under any circumstances. And this This means that the IOC, which is politically oriented precisely towards the other side of the world, will not weaken its position on a neutral status for Russian and Belarusian athletes.
And in general, if a couple of months ago it seemed that the participation of athletes with Russian and Belarusian passports in the Games was a resolved issue, now, it feels like there are doubts. While the IOC is “monitoring the situation,” the chances of Russians and Belarusians to qualify for the Olympics are becoming less and less. And in some sports they disappear altogether. In addition, a very significant story happened — the IOC did not allow the Russian and Belarusian teams to participate in the Asian Games. Although in China they were happy to accept athletes without any restrictions or declarations.
And finally, this week a fresh statement from French President Emmanuel Macron arrived, which also speaks for itself. “There cannot be a Russian flag at the Olympics in Paris,” the man who leads the state with the official slogan “freedom, equality, brotherhood” emphasized in an interview with L’Equipe. In addition, he forgot that, in fact, this issue is none of his, Makronovo’s, business. Then the French President pretended to quickly remember this and expressed complete confidence in Bach in this area. Well, it’s clear, we had no doubt that the IOC President is not particularly independent in his decisions.
Macron also spoke out regarding the presence of Russian and Belarusian athletes in a neutral status — and again he did this in a categorical form that was far from his own neutrality. “The Olympic movement must decide what place to give to those Russian athletes who may have spent a lifetime preparing and may themselves be victims of the regime” — what is this if not the formulation of its own criterion for admission to the Games in Paris? And from a global perspective, the same politicization of international sport that led to the degradation of the IOC, which Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke about in August?
At the same time, Bach previously highly praised the French President for emphasizing that athletes from all countries, including those at war, should have the right to compete on world stages. Now Macron calls for a search for “balance” and calls for Ukraine to “understand.” Although it is obvious that he will not wait for this. Just as they are calling for a boycott of competitions with Russians, this is what they are doing. And at the same time they are looking for (and finding) support from their northern neighbors. Which, of course, is a special phenomenon — how the area of anti-Russian radicalism in sports was formed according to climate criteria.
But that’s not about that now. And what follows from all this: if athletes from Russia and Belarus end up at the Olympics, then they will be second-class citizens there. I don’t want to recall the saddest examples of segregation in world history, but it is obvious that among them is the current attitude of the IOC and a number of international federations towards our athletes. Especially against the backdrop of the great success of the CIS Games in Minsk and the International University Sports Festival in Yekaterinburg, where representatives of dozens of countries participated, which were not divided into “good” and “neutral”.
And while the IOC, to the tune of Western politicians, is “looking for balance», it would be useful for Russian and Belarusian athletes, in their free time from training, to reflect on everything that is happening in world sports politics. Namely, to answer the question whether their Olympic dream is worth such humiliation.