Paralympics: row over Russian participation
At the Winter Paralympics in Italy, the decision to allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete under their countries' flags has met with widespread criticism. At the same time the Ukrainian team has been banned from wearing outfits featuring a map of Ukraine that includes the Russian-occupied territories. Several countries have joined Ukraine in announcing that they will boycott the opening ceremony.
Kremlin's propaganda instrument
The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung is appalled:
“Russia has fought hard politically for this return, and sees para-sport as an important propaganda tool. Events featuring para-athletes also reinforce the slogans of perseverance for the war of invasion against Ukraine, which will continue to provide a supply of wounded participants. And on the international stage, every medal won will be held up as proof of Russia's strength and power. Is Russian para-sport miles from politics? Not at all. The Russian Paralympic Committee's major project 'We Are Together. Sport' has promoted hundreds of veterans of the Russian invasion - people who were actively involved in the unspeakable suffering of the Ukrainian population and are now being given places in para-sport teams.”
War-wounded among the Ukrainian athletes
Tageblatt also criticises the decision:
“Criticism came from Ukraine as soon as the IPC made its announcement, with the country saying it would not be sending its team or official representatives to the opening ceremony. This is understandable when one considers that some Ukrainian athletes have been seriously wounded in the war in their homeland. Other countries, such as the Baltic states and Germany, have also announced that their teams will not be participating in the parade of nations in Verona. ... It's a shame for the Paralympic movement that the sporting aspect is hardly being mentioned at the moment, because the Paralympics and its athletes certainly have much more to offer.”
Betrayal of the Olympic spirit
Latvijas Avīze questions the Olympic Games as a whole:
“There's no need to fear a boycott, because the Olympic movement has exhausted itself. It is a spineless, unprincipled, dying event. The IOC is a private office that rakes in billions at the expense of athletes and sports fans through TV broadcasting contracts. At the same time, the protagonists (the athletes) are bullied or punished for the slightest expression of freedom of opinion, as in the case of Ukrainian skeleton racer Heraskevych. ... The IOC's payrolls are not published. Instead it boasts that its decision-makers act in the name of an idea. ... Unfortunately these ideas are fundamentally flawed, opening the door to murderers while ignoring their victims!”