Ukraine condemns IOC recommendations on Russian, Belarusian athletes

KYIV (Reuters) – Ukraine’s sports ministry condemned on Wednesday what it said was a partial change of position by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in international competitions as neutrals.

“The Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine condemns the partial change of the position of the International Olympic Committee regarding the non-admission of Russian and Belarusian athletes,” the Ukrainian ministry said in a statement.

“We have consistently advocated and will continue to insist that under the conditions of the unprecedented unprovoked military aggression of the Russian Federation with the support of the Republic of Belarus against Ukraine, which contradicts the principles of the Olympic Charter, representatives of aggressor states should not be present at international sports arenas.”

(Reporting by Pavel Polityuk, Editing by Timothy Heritage)