The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has called on Ukrainian authorities to cease their threats of a possible boycott of the 2024 Paris Olympics, initiated in response to a plan by the sports body to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate under a neutral flag.
In a letter addressed to the president of the Ukrainian Olympic Committee, Vadim Guttsait, and accessed by the German agency DPA, IOC president Thomas Bach called the Ukrainian reaction «premature» as the participation of Russians and Belarusians «has not even been discussed in concrete terms yet».
Thus, Bach stressed that the threats to boycott the Olympic Games in Paris have been perceived by most of the other national Olympic committees and IOC members as an «extremely regrettable» attempt to «publicly influence» the decision-making of the organization and the future host countries.
In this line, the IOC president has reproached the Ukrainian authorities, and those of some of its allies, that encouraging a boycott against the Olympic event goes «against the foundations of the Olympic Movement» and the «principles» of the body, thus constituting a violation of the Olympic Charter. «As history has shown, previous boycotts have failed to achieve their political ends,» he said.
After the outbreak of the war, top sports bodies banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating in major events. Now the IOC has left the door open for them to take part in these events, but always under a neutral flag and without flaunting national symbols.
The proposal has not gone down well in Ukraine, where even President Volodimir Zelenski has accused the IOC of positioning itself in favor of the invading country, Russia, and its main ally, Belarus. Other senior officials have gone so far as to denounce the international body as «promoting war».
Ukraine’s main European partners, such as the United Kingdom, Poland and the Baltic countries, have shown their support for Kiev and have endorsed its threats to boycott the Olympic Games. The IOC has always stressed its support for the athletes and the Ukrainian people.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
