Russian rowers refused to participate in the Olympics in Paris – Kommersant

The coaching staff of the Russian rowing team, together with the athletes, held a general meeting at which the 2024 Olympic Games were discussed. Athletes and coaches decided to refuse to participate in the Olympics due to the requirements set by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for athletes from Russia. This decision was supported and adopted following a meeting of the Presidium of the Russian Rowing Federation (RFR).

“The current situation is contrary to all sports norms and laws; athletes react very sensitively and painfully to all statements, statements and additional conditions,” said FGSR President Alexey Svirin (quoted by website federation). According to him, Russian athletes want to participate in international competitions, but not under such discriminatory conditions.

According to the approved IOC rules, Russian and Belarusian athletes are allowed to the Olympics only in a neutral status, exclusively in the individual competition and provided that the athlete is not associated with law enforcement agencies. Athletes will also be prohibited from taking part in the opening ceremony of the Games.

After the approval of such rules, several Russian sports federations refused to participate in the Summer Olympics. The refusal was announced by the federations that oversee boxing, artistic gymnastics, diving and archery.

Read more about the reaction of Russian athletes to the IOC rules in the Kommersant article “The archers changed their target”.

Evgeny Belousov