Russia and Belarus are back in the Olympics. Sort of. In 2019 Russia was banned from the Olympics for four years. This did extend beyond the Olympics. Multiple sports banned Russian from participation. All of that had to do with doping. Prior to that in 2018 they were not allowed to compete as Russia. They had to compete as the Olympic Athletes from Russia. At the 2020 Olympics (held in 2021) and at the 2022 Olympics Russia competed as the “Russian Olympic Committee”. Four days after the 2022 Olympics, Russia invaded Ukraine.
Following the invasion of Ukraine, Russia and Belarus were banned from international sports. Early in 2023 reports came in stating that neither country would be invited to the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Last month the International Olympic Committee said they would allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in the 2024 Olympics. This kind of flew under the radar. Almost no one has talked about it. I did not hear about it until a statement was put out on Facebook last week by an international sports federation saying they would lift their ban on Russia and Belarus based on the IOC decision.
Russia and Belarus are not fully back into the Olympics. On October 12th 2023, the Russian Olympic Committee was officially suspended by the IOC. On December 8th 2023, the IOC announced that Russian and Belarusian athletes could compete in the 2024 Olympics. They won’t be allowed to participate as Russia or Belarus. They will be competing as Individual Neutral Athletes. Teams from Russia and Belarus will not be allowed to enter. Individual athletes from Russia or Belarus can compete. It is still up to the individual international federations for each sport as to weather or not to allow Russian or Belarusian athletes. Any athlete affiliated with the Russian or Belarusian military will not be allowed to enter. Sanctions against Russia and Belarus will still be in effect. Russian and Belarusian flags will be banned. Russian and Belarusian anthems will not be played. Russian and Belarusian colors and identifications will not be allowed. Government and state officials from Russia and Belarus will not be invited.
The reason for allowing individual Russian and Belarusian athletes in the 2024 Olympics is because the United Nations wants to use the Olympics as an opportunity to promote peace. It is a lot to take in. There is a lot going on. I don’t know if this is the right move by the IOC. This could lead to further conflict within the 2024 Olympics. This could escalate tensions. I understand the argument for not punishing athletes for what their government does. Actions have consequences. It might not be fair to punish an athlete for something that is out of their control. That does not really matter. Part of war is that innocent people are effected. Even if that means a countries own athletes. War is brutal. Appeasement like this does not work to achieve peace. Opening the gates for the enemy won’t stop them from attacking.
What do you think? Should Russia and Belarus be allowed to participate in international sporting events?
Zac Electrifly 
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