February 13, 2023, 19:25 – BLiTZ – News It becomes obvious that against the backdrop of pressure from Western countries, the president of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, is running out of patience. According to Sportbox.ru, on the eve of Bach gave a harsh response to Western countries after their attempt to influence the removal of Russian athletes from the 2024 Olympics and other competitions.
“It is not for governments to decide who can participate in sporting events. This would be the end of international sports competitions, world championships and the Olympic Games as we know them today,” Bach said.
The discussion mechanism itself was launched by the IOC itself at the end of January: in Russia and Belarus, the idea of returning to the world stage, even under a neutral status, was received with enthusiasm, but Poland, Great Britain, the Czech Republic and other Western countries decided to create a coalition of those who are against it.
Probably, the authors write, Bach was pissed off by the words of the Minister of Education, Science and Sports of Lithuania, Jurgita Shyugzhdinene, who said that 35 countries would oppose the admission of Russians.
“Moreover, all this was said as if the International Olympic Committee does not exist in principle,” the authors summarize.
However, for some time, with the supposedly 40 “opposing Russian athletes” countries published by the press, the figures fell to 35, and then to 30 altogether. The latest figures have already been announced by the head of the British Ministry of Culture, Media and Sports, Lucy Fraser.
Earlier, Olympic champion in cross-country skiing Veronika Stepanova said that the removal of Russian athletes from international competitions was illegal and stupid.
