(Reuters) – The head coach of the Ukrainian freestyle skiing team said a failure to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from international competition will represent a loss for Ukraine.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has recommended Russians and Belarusians be allowed to return to international competition as neutrals since their ban last year in the wake of Russia’s invasion, which Moscow calls a “special military operation”.
Ukraine’s government has said its athletes will not be allowed to take part in Paris 2024 qualifying events if they have to compete against Russians.
“Every effort must be made to ensure that they are not allowed to participate in international competitions,” Enver Ablaev told Ukraine’s public broadcaster Suspilne on Tuesday.
“If we do not achieve this, it will be our loss. If they compete and if our athletes are allowed to compete next to them, it will also be a loss. If we decided to ban our athletes from competing alongside the Russians, then this is also a loss.”
Russian and Belarusian athletes remain banned from skiing but some Olympic sports have readmitted them as neutrals. The IOC is to make a separate decision on their participation at the Paris Olympics.
Ablaev, who represented Ukraine at three Winter Games, guided Oleksandr Abramenko to aerials gold at the 2018 Olympics. In Beijing last year, Abramenko won silver and stood on the podium with bronze medallist Ilia Burov of the Russian Olympic Committee.
“I can’t even imagine how any of our athletes will stand next to a Russian on the same slope or, God forbid, on a pedestal,” Ablaev said. “We understand (the updated IOC recommendations), but there is currently no 100% ban.
“Many (Russian) athletes openly support Russia’s so-called ‘special military operation’ against Ukraine. Therefore, we are sure that it (Russia) has no right to perform in the civilised world.”
(Reporting by Hritika Sharma in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
