2023-09-30 05:00:11
Things are becoming a little clearer. However, they are not simplified. A year and a half after the start of the invasion of Ukraine and while the war continues, certain positions of principle regarding the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, in the summer of 2024, crumble. And the global sports movement displays its differences a little more every day.
Friday September 29, it was the international Paralympic committee, the IPC, which made a major turnaround. Meeting in a general assembly in Manama (Bahrain), the body first rejected the prospect of total exclusion of the Russian committee from the Paralympic Games (from August 28 to September 8, 2024). Then, it validated a partial suspension of the said committee, authorizing the reinstatement of the country’s para-athletes, under a neutral banner and on an individual basis. The decision was the same for Belarus.
Until then, the IPC had nevertheless shown great firmness towards Russia and its ally since the outbreak of the conflict at the end of February 2022. Their delegations had notably been declared personae non gratae at the Paralympic Games in Beijing winter: the 83 athletes involved had to hastily leave the Chinese capital, on the eve of the opening ceremony, March 3, 2022.
The least we can say is that the decision taken on Friday was not unanimous: almost all of the European national Paralympic committees supported the extension of a drastic ban on the two nations.
The specter of boycotts still present
We have also seen softening and fractures appear in recent days on this issue, in football. UEFA, the European federation, announced on September 26 the reintegration into competition of Russian youth teams (under 17). Here again with safeguards: their matches must be played “without flag, anthem or official uniforms” and outside the national territory.
The justification given by the organization – “Children should not be punished for actions for which adults are solely responsible” – did not convince Ukraine. Because if the country’s teams in other age categories remain excluded, UEFA has opened a breach. And revived the prospect of possible boycotts, which had dissipated a little in recent months.
In the process, kyiv made it known that its selections will not play in the tournaments in which young Russians will take part, calling on its supporters to do the same. “The only good solution”according to Poland, « surprise » by the choice of the European federation and which was the first to rally the Ukrainian position. England, Latvia and even Sweden followed. The Scandinavian federation has also warned that it will not authorize Russia to take part in the European women’s under-17 championship, scheduled for its soil from May 5 to 18, 2024.
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