(Reuters) – Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday told the head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) that his country opposes the idea of Russian athletes taking part in the 2024 Summer Games in Paris, the presidential office said.
Zelenskiy, noting that 184 Ukrainian athletes had died in the war with Russia, spoke to IOC President Thomas Bach, who last week said the participation of Russian and Belarusian sportsmen and women at the 2024 Olympics was still unclear.
Zelenskiy said Ukraine was disappointed by what he called the IOC’s intention to allow Russians and Belarusians to compete under a neutral flag.
“One cannot try to be neutral when the foundations of peaceful life are being destroyed and universal human values are being ignored,” Zelenskiy’s office quoted him as saying.
“A just response to such actions can only be the complete isolation of the terrorist state in the international arena. In particular, this applies to international sporting events.”
Zelenskiy did not give any details of the 184 Ukrainian athletes he said had died in the war.
The United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee on Monday endorsed exploring the possibility of Russian and Belarusian athletes featuring in the Games, but said they must do so strictly as neutral competitors.
Bach said last week that while IOC sanctions against Russia and Belarus remain in place, the “protective measures” of not letting their athletes compete in international competitions to protect the events’ integrity were another matter.
The IOC has not suspended or sanctioned the national Olympic committees of Russia and Belarus.
(Reporting by David Ljunggren; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
