Ukraine appeals to the IOC to allow Russian and Belarusian tennis players to compete together on the same field
Kyiv • UNN
Ukraine has appealed to the IOC and ITF not to allow Russian and Belarusian tennis players to compete together, citing IOC neutrality rules that prohibit representation of these countries at international sporting events during the ongoing war against Ukraine.
Ukraine has appealed to the IOC and the International Tennis Federation over the decision to allow Russian and Belarusian tennis players to compete together on the same field, UNN reports, citing the NOC.
Details
The President of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine Vadym Gutzeit, the acting Minister of Youth and Sports of Ukraine Matviy Bidnyi and the President of the Ukrainian Tennis Federation Serhiy Lagur have addressed the President of the International Olympic Committee Thomas Bach and the President of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) David Gaggerty in connection with the latter's decision to allow Russian and Belarusian tennis players to compete together on the same field.
The letter points out that the IOC's neutrality rules, originally published in March 2023 and updated in December 2023 for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, explicitly state that "teams of athletes with a Russian or Belarusian passport cannot be considered" and "cannot participate in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games." This is essential to the IOC and IPC mandate that holders of Russian and Belarusian passports can only compete as individual neutral athletes.
In addition, the letter cites the facts of Russian athletes' support for the war of aggression against Ukraine.
The NOC emphasizes that while the ITF may have convention-related reasons that support this decision, the signatories to the letter urge that this approach be reconsidered. The public perception of pairs of Russian or Belarusian tennis players competing in events against other pairs based on nationality inevitably indicates that they represent their countries. This is fundamentally at odds with the broader approach agreed upon by the IOC and IPC, which prohibits the representation of the Russian or Belarusian state at international sporting events, thereby excluding teams from these countries.
Ukraine's position also remains unwavering: as long as Russian troops, supported by the Belarusian government, continue their brutal war against the Ukrainian people, representatives of the accuser countries should be suspended from participating in any international competitions in any status, the NOC added.
