The Danish government on Friday said it was opposed to Russian athletes flying a neutral flag at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Thomas Bach and the International Olympic Committee want to make this possible, despite Moscow’s war of aggression in Ukraine.
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Since the February 2022 invasion, Russians and Belarusians have been banned from most international sporting events. Ukraine wants to keep this and ban Russian athletes from participating in the 2024 Summer Olympics.
However, the IOC has said it is looking at a “way” for Russians to take part in the Summer Games, which could fly under a neutral flag.
“It is Denmark’s official position, and it is my position as minister, that we must not waver in our relations with Russia,” Culture Minister Jakob Engel-Schmidt told the Danish news agency Ritzau.
“Russia must be banned from all international sporting events as long as its assault on Ukraine continues,” he added.
The minister stressed: “This also applies to Russian athletes who compete under a neutral flag. It is completely incomprehensible that there seems to be doubt in the IOC about sticking to it.”
Poland and the three Baltic countries on Thursday urged international sports bodies to ban athletes from Russia and Belarus from the Olympics, and Estonia threatened to boycott the Paris Games if the Russian athletes are not banned from the competitions.
The Norwegian Olympic Committee is also against the participation of the Russians in the Olympics.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced last week that athletes from Russia who are banned from competing in Europe may be allowed to compete in the Olympic Games, which will be held in Paris next year.
