Russia threatens Olympic boycott over ‘neutral’ athlete decision

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin condemned the decision of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to let Russian and Belarusian athletes take part in the Games next year under a neutral flag, saying he’s still considering a boycott of Paris 2024.

“If (international sports leaders) continue to act in the same way, they will bury the Olympic movement,” Putin said on Thursday, commenting on the IOC’s decision. “The very idea of ​​Olympism is suffering today,” he added during a major annual press conference in Moscow.

While participating in the Olympic Games under a neutral flag already represented a compromise for the IOC, which has received pressure to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes entirely, the decision has angered the Russian president. Putin said he wanted to “carefully analyse the conditions” for the athletes’ participations before deciding on whether he will allow them to take part in the Games or call for a boycott.

“Under the influence of Western political elites, they make decisions that are favourable to them and unfavourable to the sports world,” Putin said of the IOC.

Ukraine, which would have wanted a ban on the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes, has also condemned the IOC’s decision. At the beginning of December, Kyiv said that such a decision “encourages” Moscow to continue its invasion of Ukraine.

The 2024 Games will be held in Paris between 26 July and 11 August. Any event on Russian or Belarusian soil remains banned by the IOC, as well as the presence of the Russian and Belarusian anthems, flags and officials during competitions.