There is a trend according to which the International Olympic Committee (IOC) does not grant neutral status to Russian athletes capable of winning medals, head coach of the Russian taekwondo team Vadim Ivanov told .
On Friday, the IOC allowed four Russian judokas to participate in the 2024 Olympics in neutral status. In total, the Russian team had 12 quotas for participation in the Games – 7 for men and 5 for women. The president of the Russian Judo Federation, Sergei Soloveichik, told that Russian judokas will not participate in the 2024 Games. This is a decision by the federation motivated by disagreement with the “humiliating conditions.”
Previously, the IOC had not allowed four licensed Russian taewondo athletes to participate in the Paris Olympics.
— The IOC has only authorized four judokas out of twelve; none of the taekwondo players have been granted neutral status. Why is this happening?
— Perhaps the question should be asked to the IOC: why are they doing this?
— Do you feel that those who can win medals are not allowed?
— Among our four athletes qualified for Paris, two are Olympic champions and one silver medalist. They are clear medal contenders. This trend is therefore visible.
“This is probably a big blow for representatives of taekwondo and judokas, who obtained Olympic licenses through honest work, but who, for unknown reasons, cannot go to Paris.
– The situation is really difficult. I am not prepared to comment on behalf of the judo federation. Each sport has its own problems associated with the selection process for the Olympic Games. In our case, the licenses for Paris were obtained despite this. Because our athletes qualified for previous Games thanks to the Olympic ranking. Now such an opportunity no longer existed, since we were deprived of participation in rating competitions. Eight athletes could qualify through the Olympic rankings – four men and four women.
The current system of selection through the Grand Slam tournaments and European qualifications allowed two girls and two men to qualify according to residual criteria. We got everything we could.
So, of course, the situation is unclear. If the IOC had decided not to allow it, these problems could have been solved much earlier, rather than delaying the announcement when there were a month and a half left before the Olympics. This is completely incorrect behavior on the part of IOC officials towards athletes. Today, some are allowed in, others are not. “I don’t quite understand what this is connected with,” Ivanov told .
In February 2022, the IOC recommended that sports federations not allow Russians and Belarusians to participate in international tournaments. Later, the recommendations were relaxed and in December 2023, IOC head Thomas Bach announced that the organization would allow Russian and Belarusian athletes who passed the selection process for the 2024 Summer Games in a neutral status individual. Athletes will be able to perform in Paris without a flag, anthem and other national symbols.
The Games in Paris will take place from July 26 to August 11.
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Source : MatchTV
I am Ashley Ortiz and I am a professional journalist working for Athletistic. My specialty is in sports journalism, particularly boxing. I have written articles for some of the most renowned publications on the subject, and my work has been featured across both print and digital media platforms.
