Russian swimmer, Olympic silver medalist and World Championship bronze medalist Evgeny Korotyshkin spoke about the participation of Russian athletes in the Friendship Games to be held in the fall of 2024. In his statement to socialbites.ca, he expressed the opinion that in an environment where Russian sports are banned at the international level, these competitions can motivate athletes in a new way.
“These competitions can become a new motivation for athletes. As an organizer, Russia has proven many times that with close attention to the event we can organize competitions at a very high level. And athletes from other countries know how we can organize competitions. Our friends in the international sports community say they will be happy to come. But for now there is a political background.
Additionally, the monetary reward of winning a medal is always motivating. Now it is clear that these are important and of course all athletes want to participate in such competitions,” said Korotyshkin.
The World Friendship Games are planned to be held in Russia in 2024. It will be held in Moscow and Yekaterinburg between 15-29 September 2024. This is the first multi-sport competition to include performances in all 25 Summer Olympic and non-Olympic sports.
Previously Korotyshkin named The IOC’s demands against the Russians violate the rights of athletes.