The sports world is shaken by the Russian president Vladimir Putin the plan revives The World Friendship Games.
The games have been organized once before, in 1984. The Eastern Bloc countries organized the games in nine different countries with the motto “sport, friendship, peace”.
It was the socialist countries’ alternative to the Olympics held in Los Angeles the same year, which was boycotted by 14 different countries led by the Soviet Union.
In 1984, about 2,300 athletes from 49 countries participated in the Friendship Games. Tasosta said, for example, that in 20 of the 41 sports in athletics, the winner had a better result than the Los Angeles Olympic winner. Finland was also involved and got one medal, for sailing.
Back then, we were still living in the times of the Cold War. Now there is an outright war going on in Ukraine, which is why Russia is still largely shut out of international competitive sports, even though many concessions have been made.
The International Olympic Committee IOC announced in October that it had suspended the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC). It has still not been decided whether Russian athletes can participate in the Paris Olympics next summer.
Read more: Russian Olympic Committee suspended: Taina Susiluoto opens with a “dignified” decision – the Russians may still qualify for the Olympics
Like in 1984, Russia is already planning its own counterattack to the Olympic movement. To report on Olympic sports According to Inside the Gamez website The Friendship Games would be held in Moscow and Yekaterinburg from the 15th to the 29th. September 2024.
There would be 27 sports, 10,000 athletes and 137 participating countries. 103.5 million euros have been set aside for organizing the Games, and from now on the Games are to be held every four years. According to the site, these are plans signed by Putin, the aim of which is to ensure “free participation of Russian athletes in competitions” and “development of new forms of international sports cooperation”.
Warnings from sports bosses
Of course, the plans will not come as a complete surprise. Already last spring, the news agency Reuters covered the Russian sports minister Oleg Matytsin having said that the Friendship Games are coming back.
The International Anti-Doping Agency Wada was the first to worry about the Friendship Games. Head of Wada Olivier Niggli talked about it from the point of view of doping control.
– Wada views this with significant reservations from an anti-doping point of view.
Niggli pointed out that there is no information on what kind of anti-doping program, if any, will be in place during the event or which entity plans to implement one, as Russia’s anti-doping agency is still not in compliance with world anti-doping regulations.
Last week, the president of the International Olympic Committee already took a stand on the matter Thomas Bachwho has previously been criticized for his perceived pro-Russian comments, at least in the Nordic countries.
Bach has previously publicly hoped for the Russians to be accepted into next summer’s Olympics. At the end of March, the IOC board recommended that individual athletes from Russia and Belarus be accepted back into international competitions without country codes under certain conditions.
In summer Bach resented Ukraine for not allowing some of its athletes to participate in the qualifying competitions for the Paris Olympics, in which Russian and Belarusian athletes are participating.
Read also: Thomas Bach, who caused a stir with his Russia speeches, wants an exceptional extension – that’s why some IOC members demand a rule change
Now, however, Bach knocked out the Friendship Games.
– The Russian government complains to us that we have not maintained political neutrality. At the same time, the same government is trying to organize a completely political sporting event.
Full of politics, except in the opinion of the organizers
Professor at the Norwegian Sports Academy Sigmund Loland agrees with the sports directors mentioned above. According to Loland, the Friendship Games only tell about Russia’s desire to dominate and strengthen its country’s reputation.
– The Russians have time and time again shown a lack of respect for international sports. State-controlled doping before and during the Sochi Olympics is a clear example, Loland commented to NRK.
According to the professor, the Friendship Games, which in the 1980s were considered the “Olympics of the Eastern Bloc” in Western countries, are an open counterattack to the IOC and can also harm it.
– It hits the sore spot of IOC. The Olympic idea is to avoid political positions and bring the world together. If a competing initiative gets support, the idea explodes. Friendship competitions can affect the IOC both in terms of values and practice.
Successful Russian athletes have been used as examples of the superiority of the system. Many Russian athletes are connected to the military. Sports success is used as internal propaganda. In these respects, nothing has changed since the days of the communist Eastern Bloc, but because of the war in Ukraine, managing internal stability is now especially important for the Kremlin.
Even before the Paris Olympics, the sports games of the BRICS countries will be held in Kazan, Russia. BRICS is an alliance of five developing economies – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. In addition, the countries belonging to the alliance have been invited to the BRICS games at the beginning of next year: Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Egypt and Ethiopia.
Director of National Olympic Committee Relations James Macleod stated that the Friendship Games are “a political organization supported by the Russian government”.
– Given the increasing politicization of world sports, we ask all National Olympic Committees to be cautious about this initiative, said McLeod, noting that participation in the Games would be against the guidelines of the IOC and the principle of the Olympic movement, which strives for independence and autonomy.
Although the IOC has warned its member countries against participating in the Friendship Games, they will not necessarily become an event exclusively for Russians.
– The Olympic movement consists of more than 200 national Olympic committees. Not everyone is equally concerned about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. If the prize money is high enough, some will probably feel tempted. But because of the IOC’s warning, I don’t believe in widespread international support, Loland reflected.
Director of the organizing committee of the Friendship Games Alexey Sorokin not startled by opposition.
– We feel the need for competitions where there is no place for discrimination and slogans. This is not an option for international competitions. This is a strong addition to them, and there are significant prize pools on offer here. The Games should unite countries that are ready to compete regardless of politics. The only criterion is the result.
Sports Minister Matytsin condemned the ban imposed on the Russian Olympic Committee, but stated that he did not want to break ties with the rest of the world.
– The most important task is not only to react to changes in the world’s sports order, although that is also important, but to determine Russia’s role and place in building the future of sports.