Agencies-Gaza post
Russia condemns “yet another attack” by US
The Russian embassy in Washington has called for greater isolation of Russian athletes from world sport
Russian officials have accused their American counterparts of campaigning to “pursue” Russian athletes after the US State Department, along with its allies, issued a message calling for tougher crackdowns on Russia in world sports.
The US State Department on Tuesday released a statement reiterating previous calls to ban Russian athletes from international sporting events because of the conflict in Ukraine.
That’s what the embassy asked for “The national sports federations of Russia and Belarus should be suspended from the international sports federations,” while I say so “People closely associated with the Russian and Belarusian states, including but not limited to government officials, should be removed from influential positions in international sports federations.”
In cases where Russian and Belarusian athletes were allowed to compete, the US State Department argued that they should only do so if they “Clearly they do not represent the Russian or Belarusian states.”
Not satisfied with putting Russian and Belarusian sports stars on the side, the news added “National and international sports organizations should consider suspending the broadcasting of sports competitions to Russia and Belarus.”
The statement, signed by a total of 35 nations, drew a sharp rebuke from officials at the Russian Embassy in Washington.
“We have detected another Russophobic attack from the United States and its satellites, leaving no attempts to restrict Russia’s participation in sporting events.” the embassy said in a message published on Facebook.
“We see this move as politicized and designed to, as they say here, ‘contain’ our country. At the same time, it is obvious that Ukraine is just an excuse. The persecution of Russian athletes began long before the current events. This is part of a ridiculous campaign to ‘unseal’ Russia.” it added.
“The actions of the ‘Collective West’ are another example of unfair competition to deprive Russian athletes of the opportunity to compete on equal terms with rivals from other countries.
“We emphasize that sport should be kept out of politics. Using them as a tool to exercise political pressure and settle scores directly goes against the fundamental principles of the Olympic Movement and goes against the spirit of competitiveness and healthy competition.”
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended on February 28 that Russian and Belarusian athletes should not be invited to international events because of Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine.
This call has since been followed by associations from a wide range of sports, including the football associations FIFA and UEFA.
Russian officials have criticized the bans as discriminatory and undermining the principle that the sport should remain free from political interference.
