Daina Gudzinevichiute, President of the Lithuanian National Olympic Committee (NOC), talked about a possible boycott of the 2024 Games due to the reception of athletes from Russia and Belarus.
“The Russians and Belarusians do not care that they will perform without a flag and without an anthem. I think we should not bow to them, they will only be happy with our boycott. We should definitely participate in competitions,” LRT quotes Gudzinevichiute.
Recall that at the end of February 2022, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) made a call to international sports federations and recommended that Russian and Belarusian athletes not be allowed to participate in any competitions.
At a meeting of the IOC executive committee on March 28, it was recommended to allow the Russians to have a neutral status, if the athletes were not actively engaged in supporting hostilities. Athletes representing law enforcement and armed forces will not be allowed to compete.
Giovanni Malago, former head of the Italian NOC reported On the approval of the recommendations of the IOC on the admission of Russian athletes.