Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski has called it «disappointing» that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is allowing Russian athletes to return to competitions under a flag of neutrality that is «stained with blood.»
«One cannot but be disappointed by the statements of the current president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach,» Zelenski has expressed, inviting him to Bajmut to see «with his own eyes» that there is no such thing as neutrality.
«Today we are starting a marathon of honesty that will aim to cleanse the hypocrisy of the international Olympic structures and any attempt to drag representatives of a terrorist state into world sports,» the Ukrainian president said.
Zelensky said he had spoken to Bach «several times» and on none of these occasions did he tell him how they intend to «protect sport from war propaganda» on the day when Russian athletes will compete again at the international level.
«There is no such thing as neutrality when a war like this is going on (…) It is obvious that any neutral flag of Russian athletes is stained with blood,» said Zelenski, who predicted that it is «inevitable» that Russian athletes will serve Moscow’s interests in upcoming competitions.
Therefore, he said that Ukraine will do its best to keep sport away from «political and terrorist state influence» and conditioned the presence of Russian athletes in competitions, such as the Paris Olympics in 2024 to the end of «aggression and terror» over Ukraine.
«Ukrainian athletes are forced to protect the lives of their loved ones and the freedom of our people from Russian aggression. Russian attacks claimed the lives of hundreds of Ukrainian men and women who could have enriched world sport with their talent,» he has said.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
