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A protester behind a historic Belarusian flag
Photo: Uncredited / dpa
The son of the ruler Alexander Lukashenko is the new President of the National Olympic Committee (NOK) of Belarus.
Viktor Lukashenko succeeded his father on Friday, as the state agency Belta reported.
He was therefore elected at a meeting of the body in the capital Minsk.
Alexander Lukashenko has held this post since 1997.
Since the presidential election, which was widely considered to be falsified, more than six months ago and the mass protests with massive police violence, athletes have repeatedly criticized the head of state.
In autumn, more than 1,500 athletes from Belarus called for fair elections and an end to the violence against peaceful demonstrators in an open letter.
Lukashenko insulted her as a traitor.
"I say one thing: you will not be happy with treason."
Due to the situation in the country, Belarus was only withdrawn from the ice hockey world championship a month ago.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) had also banned Lukashenko from all Olympic activities, including the Tokyo Summer Games.
Lukashenko had himself confirmed for a sixth term in the election with 80.1 percent of the vote.
More than 30,000 people were temporarily arrested during protests.
After the presidential election on August 9, in which Lukashenko was confirmed for a sixth term with 80.1 percent of the vote, there were mass protests in Belarus for months.
The opposition accuses the head of state, who has been in power for 26 years, of electoral fraud.
The security forces regularly use violence against demonstrators.
Thousands of people were arrested and reportedly severely ill-treated.
The EU does not recognize Lukashenko's re-election.
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sak / dpa
