The president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, has defended this Sunday that the Ukrainian government knows that the Olympic body shares its pain after the Russian invasion of his country, stating, however, that it is not up to him to decide who participates in international sports competitions.
«It is not for governments to decide who can participate in which sports competitions, because that would be the end of international sports competitions and the world championships and the Olympic Games as we know them,» Bach said in statements reported by ‘The Guardian’.
According to the IOC president’s vision, the Olympic Games are «a mission of peace», insisting that «history will show who is doing more for peace: those who try to keep the lines open and communicate, or those who want to isolate and divide».
Bach stressed the need to «find a solution that does justice to the mission of sport, which is to unify, not to contribute to more confrontation, to more escalation,» the newspaper reported.
«We support the 3,000 members of the Ukrainian Olympic community so that there will be a strong Ukrainian team in Paris,» said the IOC president, saying he shares the pain and human suffering of Ukrainian athletes.
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 high-ranking officials have even denounced the international organization as «promoting war», while the IOC is calling for an end to the pressure.
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)
