Russia launched a furious tirade at the International Olympic Committee on Wednesday, arguing the IOC's restrictions on Russian athletes and its criticism of the Moscow-organised Friendship Games amounted to "neo-Nazism".
The IOC on Tuesday both barred Russian athletes from taking part in the opening ceremony of the 2024 Paris Olympics on July 26 and criticised the Kremlin for planning to hold its own "Friendship Games" to rival those held in the French capital.
"These decisions demonstrate how far the IOC has moved away from its stated principles and slipped into racism and neo-Nazism," Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a briefing.
The IOC suspended Russia from the 2024 Games last year, but gave the green light for its athletes to compete as neutrals as long as they did not actively support the Kremlin's assault on Ukraine.
This neutral status forces Russian athletes to "renounce any association with their homeland, with their citizenship, with their history, culture and people," Zakharova argued.
"The IOC's decisions are wrongful, unjust and unacceptable," she said.
"We are outraged by the unprecedented discriminatory conditions imposed by the International Olympic Committee on Russian athletes."
- 'Intimidation' -
Russia's fury comes a day after the IOC issued a strongly-worded statement accusing the Kremlin of "politicising sport" by planning to hold its own Friendship Games.
Announced several months ago, the first edition of the Summer Friendship Games is "planned to be held in Moscow and Yekaterinburg" next September, the IOC said, with the first winter edition to take place in 2026 in Sochi, the venue for the highly controversial 2014 Winter Olympics.
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The IOC called on the sporting world and governments invited by Moscow "to reject any participation in and support of" the event, but stopped short of sanctioning those who take part.
The Kremlin warned the IOC against such sanctions on Wednesday.
"This is intimidation of the athletes. It completely undermines the credibility of the IOC," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Tensions between Moscow and the Olympic body had already been running high for years over a long-running doping scandal which saw Russians barred from competing under their own flag in the 2020 Tokyo Games.
The IOC accused Moscow in the same statement of "total disrespect for the global anti-doping standards and the integrity of competitions", citing concerns made last week by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in light of the institutionalised doping at the Sochi Winter Olympics 10 years ago.
Athletes from Russia and Belarus have faced sanctions from a myriad of sports since Moscow launched its assault on Ukraine in February 2022.
Over the past year a number of Olympic sports have eased restrictions, allowing athletes from both countries to return to competition under certain conditions.
Sportspeople from Russia and Belarus will compete in Paris as "Individual Neutral Athletes".
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Comments (4)
Neo-Nazism? Next it’ll be threatening to nuke the IOC, just you wait!
Nazi Russia could hold a special Orc Olympics for their fellow scum-being citizens. Events could be "Stealing Appliances", "Child Kidnaping" and "the Best Nazi Ever" events, to name a few. Putler the Insane can GF himself. I hope he dies a miserable death, and soon. Fkn genocidal, criminal clown.
"Friendship" Games? roflmao There are no friends in the Kremlin. They must all have cervical pathology by now from suddenly looking behind them when they pass windows.
Yeah well the evil Kremlin cronies rage against everything justly being done to support Ukraine and shed light on putler's crimes.
So rage away putler's minions....your rage is my entertainment.
Ha, ha, ha, hah.....Russians banned from an IOC event....thats a good one Dmitry Peskov & Maria Zakharova ..please give us another laugh.
Could you also have putin regail us again with stories of valour and innovation from his "Soviet Onion" (his related comedic interview by 'Philomena Cunk' linked below):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oONWipjpuDY