Polish Minister of Sport and Tourism Kamil Bortniczuk on Thursday said he expected several dozen nations to come out against the inclusion of athletes from Russia and Belarus in next year’s Olympic Games in Paris.
“I think that next week ... a very firm stance on the part of representatives from these 40 countries will see the light of day,” Bortniczuk told state television.
The position will “very clearly oppose the participation of Russians and Belarusians in the Olympic Games,” he added.
Photo: Reuters
He said he believed those opposing the Russian and Belarusian athletes would notably include members of the EU and the UK.
Bortniczuk also mentioned the US, although the White House on Thursday said it would back allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete as neutrals.
Sports ministers from the group have a videoconference scheduled for Friday next week, he added.
The past few days have seen a growing debate over the Games.
Ukraine is calling for Russian athletes to be entirely banned over their nation’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, with Ukrainian athletes among the victims. Russia is pushing for all restrictions to be lifted, saying the Olympics should not be politicized.
The International Olympic Committee has said it is examining a “pathway” for Russians to take part in the Games, probably as neutral athletes.
Earlier on Thursday, Bortniczuk and his counterparts from Baltic states released a joint statement criticizing the committee.
“Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland condemn the efforts of the International Olympic Committee to bring back the athletes of the aggressor countries, Russia and Belarus, into international competitions,” the statement said.
Efforts to include the athletes “under the veil of neutrality legitimize political decisions and widespread propaganda of these countries also through the use of sport as a distraction from the illegal aggression against Ukraine,” it said.
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