Last Tuesday, the International Olympic Committee “recommended” the reinstatement of Russian and Belarusian athletes in international competitions, under a neutral banner and “in an individual capacity”, for those who did not actively support the war in Ukraine. Two days later, the Minister of Sports and the Olympic and Paralympic Games spoke during a trip to Rosny-sous-Bois (Seine-Saint-Denis) on this very sensitive subject.
The IOC’s recommendation to reinstate Russian athletes “in no way prejudges” their presence at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, Amélie Oudéa-Castéra said on Thursday. A participation of Russian athletes in Paris, if it were to be decided by the international federations, would take place “under a strict regime of neutrality, without banner or Russian flag, without anthem”, recalled the minister, adding that President Emmanuel Macron would speak on the subject in the summer.
“All of this is a step that in no way prejudges what we will do. It is the IOC which has the last word, it is the IOC which sets the conditions for the participation of both Olympic and Paralympic athletes, further declared Amélie Oudéa-Castéra. On the other hand, it is obvious that the Head of State of the host country will have a voice that will be listened to in this reflection that the IOC will lead. »
The Minister of Sports indicated that she was continuing her exchanges with her “counterparts from different countries”: “We are progressing in deciphering the best that can be done”, she continued, on the sidelines during the inauguration of a skate park as part of the “5000 sports grounds” plan
The executive board of the international Olympic organization will decide “at the appropriate time” on the possible participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the 2024 Paris Olympics. A planetary event that Ukraine, Poland and the Baltic countries threaten to boycott in the event of a Russian presence.