Russian athletes will be allowed to participate in the Paris Paralympics next summer. Finland and the Nordic countries were in the minority in two votes.
Russian athletes will be allowed to participate in the Paris Paralympics next summer. The decision was made on Friday at the Congress of the International Paralympic Committee in Bahrain.
The majority of the members of the International Paralympic Committee IPC voted in favor of allowing Russians to compete as neutral athletes without the Russian flag and the country’s colors and emblems.
The votes of the IPC membership were divided 90-56 (six members abstained) in favor of qualifying Russian athletes only as neutral athletes.
Before this, there had been a vote to continue the exclusion of Russia without the possibility of participating as neutral athletes. This proposal was defeated by 74–65 (13 abstentions).
Finland, like the other Nordic countries, voted in favor of continuing the exclusion of Russia and against the inclusion of neutral athletes.
Vice President of the Norwegian Olympic and Paralympic Committees Arne Bård Dalhaug thundered in the joint speech of the Nordic countries before the vote that “there are other wars going on in the world, but they are not about conquering another country and stealing the territories it owns”.
– Imagine what the consequences could be if we let it happen, that internationally accepted borders between countries can just be wiped off the map with military force. Accepting Russia’s behavior would open a Pandora’s box of wars, warned Dalhaug.
“In disability sports, the idea that there will never be another war”
From Finland, the General Secretary of the Paralympic Committee was present at the IPC General Assembly Riikka Juntunen.
– Behind the whole disability sport is the idea that there will never be war again. Today’s decision shows in a sad way how short humanity’s memory is, Juntunen stated.
– At this stage, no final decisions will be made for Finland, but I emphasize that in the Finnish Paralympic Committee, decisions are always made with the interests of Finnish para-athletes first and after listening to their opinion, Juntunen said.
The IPC banned Russian and Belarusian para athletes from last year’s Winter Paralympics in Beijing after Russia invaded Ukraine the month before.
– Today’s decision of the International Paralympic Committee to allow Russian athletes to compete in the Paris Paralympic Games has offered Russia and Vladimir Putin regime for its war propaganda on the global stage, criticized Global Athlete.
Global Athlete is a movement led by international athletes that inspires and seeks positive change in world sports. It says it is working with athletes to find out what needs to change to give athletes more of a voice in sports. Global Athlete announces that it boldly and fearlessly deals with issues such as the imbalance between athletes and leaders on its website.
President of the International Paralympic Committee Andrew Parsons justified the organization’s latest policy by saying that “sport and politics should not be mixed”.
The Russian Olympic Committee has stated earlier in September that it will not boycott the Paris Olympics, and that Russians can compete in the Olympics as neutrals.
The Paris Olympics will take place from July 26 to 11. August, after which the Paralympics will be contested from August 28, 2024.
Source: Reuters, AP, press release of the Finnish Paralympic Committee