The IOC called slanderous allegations of an adviser to the office of the President of Ukraine in corruption

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) commented on the allegations of corruption against the adviser to the head of the office of the President of Ukraine Mikhail Podolyak. The IOC called the words of Mr. Podolyak slanderous and noted that they cannot be the basis for a constructive discussion.

“The IOC rejects this and other slanderous statements in the strongest possible terms. They cannot serve as a basis for any constructive discussion,” the organization said in a statement (quoted by Reuters).

The day before, Mikhail Podolyak accused the IOC of corruption and receiving money from Russia.

The statement was made against the backdrop of a discussion of the possibility of participation of Russian athletes in international competitions. Earlier, the IOC called for the return of Russian athletes to competitions in a neutral status in the absence of active support for hostilities in Ukraine. The organization noted that the Olympic movement should not be politicized.

In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky invited the head of the IOC, Thomas Bach, to visit Bakhmut (Artemovsk) and said that he was disappointed with his words about the need to allow all athletes to compete. Also in Ukraine are going to discuss the possibility of a boycott of the 2024 Paris Olympics if Russian athletes are admitted to it. In turn, the IOC thinkthat the concept of Russians playing under a neutral flag in competitions performed well at the Australian Open.

More details – in the material “Kommersant” “To All Hangzhou”.

Olesya Pavlenko