The official representative of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maria Zakharova, criticized the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which called on athletes to refuse to participate in the Friendship Games in Russia. His words were quoted RIA News.
“Such statements from an organization that is called upon to defend Olympic ideals do nothing but discourage those who do not know what motivates the leadership of this structure. These decisions show how far the IOC has moved away from the stated principles, how far it has strayed into racism and neo-Nazism,” said Zakharova.
He also stated that the conditions for Russian athletes allowed to participate in tournaments with neutral status were discriminatory.
The Friendship Games will be held in Moscow and Yekaterinburg from 15 to 29 September 2024. This is the first multi-sport competition to include performances in 33 summer Olympic and non-Olympic sports.
At the end of February 2022, the International Olympic Committee issued a call to international sports federations and recommended that Russian and Belarusian athletes not be allowed to participate in any competitions. However, in December, the IOC allowed Russia and Belarus to participate in the 2024 Olympics with neutral status.
Previously in Russia in the name The IOC does not engage in “political prostitution”.