Double Olympic champion Dmitry Vasiliev assessed the requirements of the Executive Committee of the International Biathlon Union (IBU) for Russian athletes and noted that in Western countries the majority of national team athletes are also military personnel.
On Tuesday, the IBU executive committee recommended to the congress that the suspension of the membership of the Russian Biathlon Union (RBU) and the Belarusian Biathlon Federation (BFB) in the organization be extended until certain conditions are met. The Executive Committee believes that the lifting of sanctions is possible if organizations demonstrate a commitment to support and promote the aims and principles of the IBU, in particular, distance themselves from the conflict in Ukraine and do not allow athletes to actively participate to the actions of the Russian army.
“Let them not lie. In the West, 80% of athletes are soldiers. It is a known fact. This is made to employ athletes. They then receive a living wage and additional benefits. We have a similar story. There is no cunning and obligatory participation in military operations in this area. The IBU understands everything very well, they know that not a single biathlete is involved in an armed conflict. They know our system very well. It’s just a pretext to turn a fly into an elephant. They try to come up with gross stuff and then roll it out to unbelievable proportions. I think everything should be taken calmly. Survive this period, do not grieve. Yes, the general atmosphere is not quite good, but you have to keep a cool head and not fall into hysteria. Everyone just has to do their own thing.
The question itself is nonsense. If you have facts about the participation of biathletes in a special operation, present them. Why say such a thing? As far as I know, there have been no such calls in Russia. Everyone must do their job. The fact that they mix everything together speaks of a loss of common sense. A kind of madness has taken hold of society. It’s very sad. Before setting the terms of the SBR, you must first tell us what we are doing wrong. But, as far as I know, they have nothing to present,” Vasilyev said in an interview with RT.
On March 2, the IBU suspended Russians and Belarusians from participating in competitions under the auspices of the organization. On March 29, the IBU suspended the membership of RRF and ESB.
TR
Source : MatchTV
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