This Friday, the 2024 Summer Olympic Games will begin. Thousands of athletes from around the world will gather in Parris for two weeks to participate in a variety of competitions. They will strive to do their best and hope to make their nations proud.
Traditionally, this is a time of serious accomplishments and honor. There is also much to celebrate. But despite the excitement surrounding this year’s competition, the Games will be slightly tarnished. This is because of Russia’s participation in Paris.
Officially, Russian athletes will be competing as neutral athletes. In December 2023, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) ruled that Russian men and women competing in the Games would have to participate without national affiliation. This was a way to punish Russia for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
When the war began, the IOC quickly condemned the Russian military incursion. They ruled that Russian athletes would be unable to compete under the Russian flag at the Games. In addition, the IOC suspended the Russian Olympic Committee for Russia’s illegal occupation of the Ukrainian provinces of Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson, as well as Crimea.
Despite these punishments, the IOC fell short of banning Russian athletes entirely. Instead, the Olympic body issued a statement arguing that Russian athletes should not be held responsible for the actions of their government.
In response, dozens of countries around the world wrote a joint letter to the IOC calling for the organization to reconsider its decision. They argued that the IOC should ban Russian athletes from participating in the competition to punish Russia for its ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
On one hand, the pressure has worked. Days before the Games are set to begin, the Russian Federation announced that only 15 Russian athletes will participate in the competition this summer. In addition, the Russian national anthem will not be played at the medal ceremonies. Finally, Russian athletes will be excluded from the opening ceremony at the Games this summer.
Despite these decisions, the IOC has done everything but ban Russia’s participation. Instead, the Olympic body has opted to allow Russian athletes to participate in this year’s Games.
In response, nearly 40 countries from North America, Europe, Asia, and Oceania threatened to boycott the upcoming Olympic Games if the Russians were still allowed to compete. French politicians even stated that their country could potentially block visas issued to Russian athletes.
But it appears that these were just empty threats. Russian athletes will be allowed to enter France. They will also will still compete in this summer’s competition.
Neutrality or not, the Russian Federation will receive publicity throughout the competition. This will be used as a propaganda point for the Russian government, where Russian media outlets will argue that Russia overcame pressure from the international community. Russian news outlets will also broadcast the success of their athletes at the Games.
It is also known that several Russian athletes are also servicemen and women. Many of them have participated in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. They also received awards from the Russian government for their role in Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. In other words, they are not ordinary athletes, but individuals who have participated in Europe’s largest military conflict since the Second World War.
In short, the international community has failed to punish Russia in this major competition.
Despite the threats of a boycott and calls for the IOC to ban Russian athletes, the international body has allowed Russian men and women to participate in the Games. This suggests that they have opted not to punish Russia for its ongoing invasion of Ukraine, and it risks normalizing the behaviors of dictators.
Russia’s participation in the 2024 Summer Olympic Games will signal to other authoritarian governments that they can meddle in the affairs of their neighbors without punishment. It will also suggest that these aggressive nations can continue to participate in international sporting competitions despite their aggression toward other countries. This may lead to a dangerous and new precedent in the international community, and one that will be unchecked by the law.
The globe had an opportunity to take a stand against tyranny. Instead, it opted to stand down.
Editor’s note. The opinions expressed in our Opinion section belong to their authors. Euromaidan Press’ editorial team may or may not share them.
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