Sydney: John Coates, Senior Vice-President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), sheds light on the uncertain presence of Russian athletes competing as neutrals at the Paris Games, hinting that the number could be as low as 40.
In response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, which utilized Belarus as a staging post, the IOC has imposed strict sanctions, permitting only select Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in Paris under stringent conditions.
The inclusion of these neutral athletes has stirred controversy, with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba denouncing December’s decision as “shameful”, and Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo expressing hopes that they would abstain from attending.
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Coates addressed the complexity of the situation in an interview with Sydney’s Daily Telegraph, stating, “The issue is how many of them are going to be there too, because they’re not going to be in any team sports since they can’t compete as Russia.” He continued, “And then anyone who is prepared out of the Russian military clubs, they’re not going. I don’t know, but obviously some athletes might choose not to go if they’re not competing for Russia. I mightn’t be right, but I think that I’ve read something that it might be as little as 40.”
Neutral athletes will exclusively participate in individual sports devoid of national symbols or anthems, while those with affiliations to the war in Ukraine or contractual ties to the Russian or Belarusian military are ineligible.
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Despite Moscow’s labeling of the invasion as a “special military operation” and its condemnation of the restrictions as “illegitimate, unfair and unacceptable”, Russia’s Olympic chief, Stanislav Pozdnyakov, confirmed that the country’s athletes would not boycott the Games.
Following doping sanctions that barred them from competing under the Russian flag, 335 athletes participated in the 2021 Tokyo Summer Games under the banner of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), securing 71 medals. Meanwhile, Belarus fielded 101 athletes who garnered seven medals.
