Swimming world record holder Evgenia Chikunova said she refused to participate in the Paris Olympics on principle and did not regret it, despite the fact that she met the selection conditions for two distances.
Chikunova decided not to compete in Paris, because she considers unacceptable the admission conditions proposed by the international federation (World Aquatics) to obtain neutral status.
“People ask me if I have changed my mind, but for me the situation has not changed at all. I have already said that I consider these admission criteria unacceptable. And no, I haven’t changed my mind. If anyone thinks that I might change my mind because of the prize money offered, because others have decided to follow this path and compete in the Olympics… But I made this decision based on my spiritual and moral priorities, because of my beliefs on this subject. admission system itself, not because of other factors.
— Do you have a standard for participation in the Games?
– At two distances – 100 and 200 meters [брассом].
— Have you spoken to the coach about what’s going on?
— Yes, we spoke with Vitta Vladimirovna [Новожиловой, тренером], but only because there is now a lot of news on this topic? I indicated that none of this affects my decision. She replied: “I respect that, let’s continue working,” Chikunova said in an interview with .
In 2023, Chikunova set a world record in the 200 meter breaststroke at the Russian Championships.
In December 2023, International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach said the organization would grant individual neutral status to Russian and Belarusian athletes who successfully qualified for the 2024 Summer Games. will be able to perform in Paris without a flag, anthem and other national symbols. At the same time, a special commission checks the admission of Russian athletes to the Games.
The Paris Olympic Games will take place from July 26 to August 11, 2024.
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Source : MatchTV
I’m John White and I’m an experienced journalist working in the news industry. My specialty is covering sports news, which I’ve been doing for over 6 years now. During this time, I have worked as an author with Athletistic, a popular online news website focusing on sports topics.
