The organizers of the Winter Paralympics reversed course and expelled athletes from Russia and Belarus on Thursday because of threats of withdrawals and growing animosity in the Athletes Village.
Less than 24 hours after the International Paralympics Committee said it would allow Russians and Belarusians to compete, it reversed itself and said neutral athletes with colors, flags and other national symbols would not be allowed.
The Paralympics in Beijing will close on March 13.
The war has come to these Games and behind the scenes many governments are having an influence on our cherished event, according to the president.
The negative reaction to allowing Russians and Belarusians to compete was underestimated by the IPC. The Athletes Village, which was supposed to be a place of harmony, was now depicted as a tinderbox.
Ukrainians were not the only ones who resented the Russian and Belarusian participation.
There were no reports of aggression or anything like that.
It was a very rapid escalation, which we didn't think was going to happen. We didn't think that entire delegations, or even teams within delegations, would pull out.
The first instance was when the curlers from Latvia said they wouldn't play against the Russians.
The change in athletes, administrators and politicians was described by Craig Spence. He said they were thinking of going home. We are not playing.
That threatens the viability of the event. The atmosphere in the Village is not pleasant.
The Russian and Belarusian Paralympics committees are expected to take legal action after he ruled their athletes could compete. The likely place is the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The facts that we express here led us to understand that this was the right decision to be taking.
The decision to expel its athletes was called illegal by the Russian Paralympic Committee.
Russian athletes have not done anything which could be seen as being involved in the current political problems.
He understands the disappointment of the 71 Russians and 12 Belarusians who will be sent home. He didn't know how quickly that would happen with the restrictions in China.
No one is happy with the decision, but it is the best decision for the Paralympics to go ahead.
Sports like soccer, track, basketball, hockey and others have imposed blanket bans on Russians.
The final decision to exclude Russian and Belarusian athletes from international events was left to individual governing bodies.
Russia's athletes were allowed to compete in the last four Olympics despite a state-sponsored drug scandal and coverup. The memberships and leadership positions of Russians in the IOC have not been removed.
The Russian and Belarusian athletes are not at fault according to Parsons.
Para athletes from the impacted countries, we are very sorry that you have been affected by the decisions your governments have made.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
