“It’s a shame that athletes like Rylov and Kolesnikov won’t compete in the Olympics. They have worked for this all their lives. » – Yolanda Chen

Honored Master of Sports of Russia Yolande Chen told she was offended that external circumstances could hinder swimmers Kliment Kolesnikov And Evgeny Rylov perform at the Paris Olympics.

On Sunday, Rylov said on that he was not going to follow the example of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and refused to travel to the Paris Olympics under the proposed conditions. Previously, Kolesnikov also refused to participate in the Olympics due to the admission requirements for Russian athletes.

— In any case, I respect Rylov’s choice. Our president said that everyone would choose for themselves whether or not to participate in the Olympics. You can’t get inside a person’s head; everyone has reasons to go or not to go. But it is always a pity that such athletes are not present at the Olympic Games and due to circumstances they cannot write their name in history in golden letters. After all, the once neutral status will be replaced by the Russian flag, everyone knows that these are Russian athletes. When athletes like Rylov and Kolesnikov do not go, I am very upset, because they have worked towards this all their lives. It’s a shame when unpleasant external conditions do not allow people to fully realize themselves,” Chen told .

On December 8, the IOC announced that it would allow Russian and Belarusian athletes who successfully qualified for the 2024 Summer Olympics to have individual neutral status. In Paris, Russian and Belarusian athletes can only compete without a flag, anthem and other national symbols. The IOC banned the participation of athletes associated with security forces or who have expressed support for the CBO.

The Paris Olympic Games will take place from July 26 to August 11, 2024.