Insisting sports had to respect the human rights of all athletes, International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach on Sunday denied that the organisation was on the wrong side of history by helping Russians and Belarusians qualify for the 2024 Paris Summer Games.
Bach and the IOC have faced a widespread backlash from Ukraine and its allies, including comments directed at him by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, since setting out a path last month for some athletes from Russia and Belarus to return to international competition despite the war waged by their countries.
"We have shown this in the past with great success in the Olympic movement," Bach said, pointing to the examples of North and South Korea, Israel and Palestine, and Kosovo. "Our role is bringing people together." "Russia is killing my people. Not good situation for Olympic Committee," Kovbasnyuk said in Courchevel.
The IOC has cited advice from United Nations human rights experts that banning athletes on the basis of their passport would be discrimination. Olympic leaders have set out a path for athletes from Russia and Belarus who have not actively supported the war to try to qualify and compete as "neutral athletes" without a national identity such as team uniforms, flags and anthems. Governing bodies of each Olympic sport must decide if and how athletes could compete.
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