BarcelonaJust one day before the start of the Beijing Paralympic Winter Games, the organizers of the event, in contact with the International Olympic Committee, made the decision to expel the delegations from Russia and Belarus. The Chinese event opens today without any athletes from these states. An athlete had not been expelled for political reasons for years.
The war in Ukraine has forced all international organizations to take sides. And both the IOC and the organizers of the Paralympic Games have been harsh, adding a new sanction to the long list of punishments Russia has received in sports. “One of the keys is to punish the representations of the Russian state, but something very different is the individual athlete,” says lawyer Juan de Dios Crespo. Lawyer admitting that this is a legally complex case. In fact, the Russian Football Federation has stated that it will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). play-off to qualify for this November’s World Cup. The Russian Olympic Committee also wants to fight the TAS.
Russian sport suffers from one of the largest sanctions in the history of sport, at the height of that received in the 60s and 70s by apartheid South Africa, as well as that received by Germany in the years following World War II. During the first week of the conflict, the expulsions of Russian clubs and national teams have been chained. Presidents of federations have resigned, the venue for the Champions League final or the World Volleyball Championships has been changed, the F1 schedule has been changed to avoid running in Sochi and sponsorship contracts have been broken, especially with Russian gas giant Gazprom. Chelsea president Roman Abramovich himself has decided to sell the club on the understanding that he could be sanctioned by being Putin’s ally. As individuals, dozens of foreign athletes and coaches working in Russia have decided to leave. But no Russian athlete has been fired from a foreign club, as “an athlete is not to blame for being born in a place, being fired for being Russian would be illegal.” “Something different would be if he expresses opinions in public,” Crespo says.
Expelling an entire country from big competitions is nothing new. It happened to her in Afghanistan during the years of the first Taliban government, for not respecting women’s rights, or it has happened to her in Kuwait recently, for political interference within her International Olympic Committee. Voluntary boycotts by many states during the Cold War were very different, such as the United States at the 1980 Moscow Games and the Soviets at the 1984 Los Angeles Games. In this case, the IOC or the Paralympic Committee who makes that decision. I had done it before, usually after a war. The losers of the First World War were not in Antwerp in 1920. The Germans and the Japanese were not in London in 1948. Nor were they able to take part in the 1950 World Cup, in this case. The current case is different, as it comes in the early days of a war.
“We have made this decision with great regret in all respects, including by Russian athletes. But it is the responsibility of the Russian government. We cannot fall into the propaganda that comes from there saying it is a political act. These are the consequences of violating Olympic laws by his government, “Thomas Bach said of the decision to exclude Russian Paralympic athletes, who were ready to make their debut in China. Many had been training for days. Initially, they were told that they could compete as “neutral”, but the Ukrainian delegation, with the support of other athletes, insisted on their expulsion. 24 hours later, it was announced that this would be the case.
Russia, as had happened at the Winter Olympics a few days ago, could not participate using its anthem and flag to carry a doping sanction. They have now been left out of almost every competition in any sport in which a team participates, such as the Davis Tennis Cup, where they were champions; like the World Hockey or Volleyball World Cup, or the World Cup qualifying round, of course. The big question, though, is what to do with the athletes. Very few have spoken out in favor of war. Most are silent. And many, if they have been brave, have condemned him, such as footballer Fyodor Smolov or tennis player Andrei Rublev. The new world number one tennis player, Daniel Medvedev, has stated: “Right now I just want one thing, peace.” The International Olympic Committee has suggested that all sports federations, as well as the organizers of competitions, not allow the participation of Russian athletes and officials in international competitions. If they do, the proposal is for them to do so as neutral without displaying flags, national colors, symbols or anthems, as decided by the International Swimming Federation.
Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina, for example, said she would not play her match at the Monterrey tournament in Mexico against her rival Russia’s Anastasia Potapova. Seeing how Potapova condemned the war and the organizers decreed that the Russian flag would not appear anywhere, Svitolina agreed to play. He did it with the colors of the Ukrainian flag. And he won. Russian athletes who may be in certain events, competing as neutrals, also face another problem, the logistics: leaving Russia is becoming increasingly difficult due to the closure of airspace. Some, like tennis player Medvedev, do not have this problem, as he has lived in Monaco for years.
Attack those responsible for the war
The IOC admits: “We are pleased to see that many international federations adhere to these recommendations and make it clear that it is a sanction against the Russian government, which are protective measures for competition and athletes. They do not go against the Russian people. Against Russian athletes, against Russian sports organizations Sanctions are aimed at those responsible for the war This war has had consequences that affect the whole world, not just Russia, Ukraine and Belarus It affects all aspects of life , not only politics and economics, but also culture, business and sport.The goal is to contribute to peace through sport.There can be no doubt about where we are in this situation.We are next to peace and we want to make it very clear. ” According to Juan de Dios Crespo, the sanctions are “fair” because it is clear that the Russian government has used sport to strengthen its image and power, organizing the World Cup in 2018 or the Winter Games in 2014 .
Russian sport is on its way to being as isolated as South Africa in the 1960s. Just before the 1964 Games, the IOC decided to expel its committee, which had participated in the 1960 meeting, as racial segregation. In 1970, after years of international pressure, the South African Olympic Committee was expelled from the IOC, where it would not return until Mandela came to power. In those years, South Africa proposed to FIFA to send a football team to the World Cup, making three proposals: one for whites only, one for blacks only and one for mestizos only. Although FIFA President Stanley Rous studied to accept it, international pressure prevented South Africa from competing. Those were the years when seeing a rugby team visiting South Africa could lead to Olympic boycotts.
Yugoslavia, a different case
In 1992, during the Balkan War, the United Nations was tasked with temporarily expelling Yugoslav sport. But in this case, Russia has the right to veto UN votes, which is why the decisions have been taken by the federations themselves, at the request of higher bodies, such as the IOC or FIFA, the International Football Federation. The principle used by the IOC is that the rule that all sports delegations should be able to compete on an equal footing has been broken. Ukraine is unable to do so now and Russia is responsible. Any selection that represents this state, then, is punished; as well as the oligarchs make it clear that they have been partners in Putin.
One of the first sports to react was football. Russia had to play this March play-off to qualify for the Qatar World Cup, but their rivals, Poland, the Czech Republic and Sweden, refused to play against them. Initially, FIFA’s solution was to order that both the national team and the Russian clubs be punished for playing on neutral ground, away from home; and that the selection could not use the name of Russia. Unable to change the position of Poles, Swedes and Czechs, they decided to expel Russia. In addition, the Champions League final, scheduled for this year in St. Petersburg, will finally take place in Paris. A decision that did not come alone: UEFA renounced the sponsorship deal with Gazprom, which leaves more than 40 million euros a year in their pockets.
Vladimir Putin has been sanctioned by his two favorite sports: ice hockey, with the team expelled from all tournaments, and judo. In fact, he was honorary president of the International Federation. It is no longer. According to Olympic champion gymnast Alina Kabaeva, a member of the Duma and, according to some reports, Putin’s sentimental partner: “This sanction is the most unjust I can remember. Look at the latest conflicts, wars involving other states, and never sanctioned his athletes. For what reason now? “