Paralympics: Russia and Belarus are now excluded after all - "Rapidly escalating situation"
Created: 03/03/2022, 10:42 am
By: Antonio Jose Riether
Sports federations worldwide are reacting to the Ukraine conflict.
At the Paralympics, athletes from Russia and Belarus have now been excluded from the event after all.
Beijing - On Wednesday, the International Paralympic Committee initially decided to allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to take part in the games.
Just a day and several boycott threats later, it reversed the controversial decision.
After some participating countries were outraged about the imminent participation of the two countries, the committee apparently felt compelled to act and reversed its decision.
Paralympics 2022: Boycott threats made the committee rethink - Russia and Belarus excluded
The most important major sporting event for people with physical disabilities begins on Friday.
Just a day earlier, the organizers showed a real reaction to Russia's attack on Ukraine, banning the two nations from the major event in the Chinese capital.
The "practicability of the Paralympic Winter Games" is said to have been endangered, also because several associations and athletes threatened to boycott the games.
In addition, the situation in the athletes' villages was said to have been tense, which according to the IPC could have become a safety problem.
Paralympics 2022: IPC boss explains the short-term Russia exclusion - "rapidly escalating situation"
Wednesday's decision initially banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing for their own country.
Thus, they would have been allowed to participate as neutral athletes under the Paralympic flag.
The German Disabled Sports Association (DBS) reacted indignantly, along with many other voices from the sports world.
"It's disappointing and discouraging.
In view of the daily atrocities of war in Ukraine, we would not have thought such a decision possible," said DBS President Friedhelm Julius Beucher.
As IPC boss Andrew Parson explained on Thursday, the global pressure had triggered a rethink among those responsible.
“At the IPC, we firmly believe that sport and politics should not be mixed up.
But through no fault of our own, the war has now come to these games and behind the scenes, many governments are influencing our cherished event," said the Brazilian.
He also admitted that the timing is anything but good: "What is clear, however, is that the rapidly escalating situation so close to the start of the games has put us in a unique and impossible position."
Paralympics 2022: IOC boss Thomas Bach apparently supported the decision of the IPC
Sports associations of all kinds worldwide, such as UEFA or the British Automobile Association, had shown solidarity with the exclusion of Russian teams and athletes.
Now the IPC followed suit, even though the head of the IOC had advised the international federations to treat athletes from Russia and Belarus as neutral participants if an exclusion should no longer be feasible.
IOC boss Thomas Bach, who opened the Winter Olympics together with China's highly controversial head of state Xi Jinping, had defended the first decision and spoke of "respect" when Russia was admitted.
(ajr)
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