Latvia has pressured the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to boycott the 2024 Paris Olympics if Russian athletes are allowed to compete.
“It is unacceptable for Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in the Olympics in any form as long as the war continues in Ukraine,” said Georges Tikmus, president of the Latvian Olympic Committee, in a statement on the 2nd. On the 31st of last month, he expressed his dissatisfaction, saying, “If Russian and Belarusian athletes participate in the Paris Olympics,메이저놀이터 we will not send Latvia athletes.”
Latvia is the first country other than Ukraine to publicly express its intention to boycott the 2024 Paris Olympics. Latvia, which gained independence in 1991 after the collapse of the Soviet Union, has a close alliance with Ukraine, which is in the same situation.
The IOC is seeking a way to participate in the Paris Olympics as a ‘neutral region player’, saying that Russia and Belarusian athletes helping them should not be disadvantaged solely because of their nationality.
It is a decision at the level that players who do not support the war can become another victim. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky protested, saying, “The participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in any form will stain the Olympics with blood.”
Chairman Tikhmus detailed the boycott plan, saying, “We cannot send Latvian athletes to the Olympic qualifiers where Russian and Belarusian athletes have not been expelled.” Latvia has also asked international sports organizations (IFs) and the United Kingdom, France and Canada to support Russia and Belarus from building ‘soft power’ through sport.
The Associated Press reported that the IOC did not immediately respond to Latvia’s statement. The IOC is scheduled to hold talks with Ukraine on the 3rd, which has declared a boycott of the Paris 2024 Olympics.