Russia publicizes plans to stage ‘World Friendship Video games’ after 2024 Olympics
Russia plans to stage a global multi-sport occasion by relaunching the ‘World Friendship Video games’ in 2024.
After the invasion of Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian athletes had been broadly banned from worldwide sport.
Nonetheless, the Worldwide Olympic Committee has beneficial each nations’ athletes are allowed to compete below a impartial flag.
The Friendship Video games had been first organised by the Soviet Union and eight different nations in 1984.
They concerned states which had boycotted that 12 months’s summer time Olympics in Los Angeles.
Asserting plans for an occasion after the Paris Olympics, Russian sports activities minister Oleg Matytsin mentioned they “ought to be held frequently sooner or later”.
“We suggest to accentuate the apply of holding competitions in an open format with the invitation of accomplice nations,” he mentioned in a press release on the Kremlin web site.
As a part of the IOC’s sanctions on Russia and its ally Belarus, no worldwide sporting occasions could be organised in both of the nations, whereas their flags, nationwide anthems or every other nationwide image should not be used.
Some Olympic sports activities resembling archery, canoeing and taekwondo have allowed athletes from the 2 nations to compete, whereas Russian and Belarusian athletes compete as neutrals in tennis.
The IOC is but to decide on whether or not Russians and Belarusians can compete on the Paris Video games, which run from 28 July to 11 August 2024.
Earlier this month, Ukrainian authorities minister Oleh Nemchinov mentioned Ukrainian athletes shouldn’t be allowed to compete in qualifying occasions for the Olympics if Russians are collaborating, whereas Ukraine has threatened to boycott the Video games.
A number of worldwide athletes have criticised IOC president Thomas Bach’s declare that Russians and Belarusians competing as neutrals of their sport “works”.
