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Russian and Belarusian athletes will ultimately be excluded from the Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) announced Thursday, March 3, on the eve of the opening of the competition.
Captured after Russian invasion in Ukraine in which Belarus collaborates, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) announced on Wednesday that these athletes could participate in the Games under a neutral banner. A decision immediately contested in several countries.
A turnaround this Thursday March 3 on the eve of the opening ceremony of these Games which are to take place in the Chinese capital until March 13. In a press release, the CIP justified itself by the fact that ” teams and athletes are now threatening not to participate, jeopardizing the chances of a successful Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games ». « The situation in the athletes’ village is deteriorating and guaranteeing their safety has become impossible added the Committee.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) accused Russia of breaking the Olympic truce. He urged the federations on Monday to ban Russians but also Belarusians from all competitions. The International Football Federation (Fifa) has thus kicked Russia out of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. And many federations (athletics, skating, rugby, boxing, swimming) have announced exclusion measures targeting Russian athletes, and sometimes Belarusians.