Ukraine Crisis | IOC urges sports bodies to cancel events in Russia, Belarus
Published:Friday | February 25, 2022 | 1:29 PM
GENEVA (AP) — The International Olympic Committee urged sports bodies Friday to cancel or move all events they plan to hold in Russia and Belarus, and stop using the countries' flags and national anthems.
The request from the Olympic body came after UEFA moved the Champions League final from St. Petersburg to suburban Paris, and after the governing body of skiing and Formula One pulled upcoming races from Russia.
Volleyball, shooting and hockey all have world championships scheduled to be held in Russia. Hockey is a favorite sport of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his home city of St. Petersburg is scheduled to host the worlds in May 2023.
Russia breached the Olympic Truce by invading Ukraine on Thursday, only four days after the closing ceremony of the Winter Games in Beijing. Some of the Russian troops entered Ukraine from Belarus, Russia's ally.
It was the third Russian breach of the Olympic Truce in the past 14 years. Russia invaded Georgia during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing and annexed Crimea shortly after the end of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.
The IOC statement signalled a toughening of the Olympic body's position on Russia. IOC president Thomas Bach has long been seen as forgiving of Russian doping scandals and too close to Putin.
Bach implored countries to “give peace a chance” in his opening and closing ceremony speeches in Beijing as Putin — who went to China and attended the opening ceremony on February 4 — sent troops and military hardware to the borders of Ukraine in Russia and Belarus.
The IOC has ultimate authority over the Olympics but recognises the independence of the governing bodies of individual sports to organise their own events and pick hosts.
Those bodies, the IOC said Friday, “should take the breach of the Olympic Truce by the Russian and Belarussian governments into account and give the safety and security of the athletes absolute priority.”
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