IOC head Thomas Bach urged to extend sanctions against athletes from Russia and Belarus
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The head of the International Olympic Committee said on Wednesday at a special conference that it is necessary to extend the sanctions against athletes from Russia and Belarus, TASS reports.
“There was a discussion and serious consultations that we have been conducting since February,” said Thomas Bach. And now the IOC is preparing “for the next consultations on Friday at the Olympic summit.”
During the discussions that took place on Wednesday, December 7, as Bach noted, “the sanctions against the governments of Russia and Belarus did not raise any questions” and the IOC received “full support” in this matter.
Sanctions, as the head of the IOC said, “should remain.”
Bach also stressed that “the issue of the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in competitions must be separated from the sanctions against their governments.” He explained that “the issue of the participation of athletes cannot be part of the sanctions”, since they cannot be punished for the decisions of their authorities. The issue, Bach said, “was always about ‘protective measures’, not sanctions, and the purpose of these measures is ‘to preserve the integrity of the competition and to ensure the safety of the athletes of these countries’.”
In February, the IOC executive committee recommended to international federations not to allow Russians and Belarusians to participate in competitions because of the events in Ukraine.
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