Athletistic/ Others. Two-time Olympic biathlon champion Dmitry Vasiliev criticized comments by International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach.

Earlier, Bach said that the withdrawal of Russian athletes from almost all international competitions was a protective measure against the reaction of world society to the political situation in Ukraine.

“He did something stupid, and in the context of sport, his actions can be considered a crime against the Olympic Committee. He needed to justify himself somehow, and he found a ridiculous excuse that he cares about the safety of athletes. And before that, when our athletes everywhere are fired, he didn’t even stutter about it. Thomas Bach will go down in history as the man who destroyed the Olympic movement,” Vasiliev said.

After the start of Russia’s special operation in Ukraine, the IOC was one of the first to recommend to European sports federations not to allow Russian athletes to participate in international tournaments.