Russia and Belarus will not get a formal invitation to the Paris Olympics in 2024, unlike the roughly 200 countries that will get one later this month, the International Olympic Committee said Thursday.
This gesture is a tradition of the IOC, one year before the opening ceremony of the Summer or Winter Olympics, in order to invite all the national delegations to take part in the prestigious world event.
Despite this decision, some Russian and Belarusian athletes could compete in Paris – even if their country is still at war with Ukraine. National delegations will however be excluded.
The IOC said Thursday that the 203 eligible National Olympic Committees will receive their invitations to the Paris Olympics on July 26.
“Under the current situation, the National Olympic Committees of Russia and Belarus will be excluded, as will the Olympic Committee of Guatemala, which is currently suspended,” the IOC said in a statement.
The chairman of the Olympic Committee of Belarus (COB) is Viktor Lukashenko, the son of the country’s president, Alexander Lukashenko. He succeeded his father as head of the COB.
The IOC last year recommended that international sports federations suspend and remove athletes, leaders and host cities from Russia and Belarus, days after the outbreak of the invasion of Ukraine 17 years ago. month.
This year, as the next Olympic Games approach, the IOC has encouraged international sports federations to admit certain Russian and Belarusian athletes, under a neutral banner, for their Olympic qualifying events.
The IOC has never ceased to say that it has absolute authority to admit or exclude Russia and Belarus from its own events.
“The IOC will make its decision at the appropriate time, at its sole discretion, and without being influenced by the results of the prior Olympic qualifying events,” it read on Thursday.
Guatemala is currently suspended by the IOC due to ongoing political ties between the country’s government and the leadership of its national Olympic committee.