With the Paris 2024 Olympic Games two years away to the day, the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) has announced their plans to be involved. Despite the large majority of Russian and Belarussian athletes being banned from competitions due to the war in Ukraine, the ROC is planning on Paris being business as usual.
At the recommendation of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the bulk of the governing bodies of Olympic sports have disallowed Russia and Belarus from competing in international competition. Since the invasion of Ukraine in February, Russian athletes have continued to train despite having nowhere to showcase their skills.
While the IOC has recommended the ban, they have not yet banned the ROC who is responsible for entering all of the athletes who will represent them. The ROC plans to have their athletes living and competing in Paris in 2024.
ROC president Stanislav Pozdnyakov wrote on the Telegram messaging app Tuesday, “In exactly two years, the Olympic Games start in Paris. Despite all of the circumstances, the Russian Olympic Committee is a full-fledged participant in the Olympic Movement,” Pozdnyakov wrote. “We are continuing our systematic preparations for the Games and are also carrying out work to ensure qualifying opportunities and equal presence of our athletes in the Olympic Village and at the venues, their participation in events during the Games.”
Although Paris is now two years away, qualifications for some sports have already begun. Soccer, for example, has several nations already qualified, but Russia was not afforded the opportunity to qualify since UEFA did not allow the nation to play.
The International Judo Federation has allowed Russian athletes to continue competing as neutral athletes who do not have the opportunity to wear their flag or hear their anthem, but if other federations decide to do the same, it could bring forth a number of boycotts from Ukraine. In fact, Ukraine refused to compete in the judo qualifying events that began in June due to 11 of the 24 Russian team members being in the Russian military.
With the slogan for Paris being revealed on Tuesday as Games Wide Open, the question begs, will it truly be wide open if the ban continues? Or will Russia and Belarus be represented in the French capital in just two years time?
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