Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has invited International Olympic Committee (IOC) chief Thomas Bach to visit his war-affected country so he realises "that neutrality does not exist."
Athletes from both Russia and Belarus were banned from competing in the 2021 Winter Paralympics following the invasion of Ukraine, with the two countries still barred from fielding teams in international sporting competitions. The majority of individuals that are able to compete are being made to do so as neutrals.
Bach has seemingly opened the door for the latter notion at the Paris 2024 games, arguing that no athlete should be banned because of their "passport." But their participation would be subject to "strict conditions" of neutrality, with a ban on Russian and Belarusian national symbols remaining in place.
"It does not correspond to the values and the mission of the Olympic Charter to exclude athletes of their passport" Bach told German publication Der Spiegel. "We know the view of Ukraine, which not only wants to isolate Russia as a state but also wants to isolate all Russians completely."
Bach also said that the threatened boycott of Paris 2024 by Ukraine over Russian involvement was "not in line with our mission." But his stance has drawn criticism from Zelenskyy, who has reacted by inviting Bach to the war-torn city of Bakhmut to "see with his own eyes that neutrality does not exist."
Bakhmut, in the eastern region of Donetsk, is currently under attack from Russian troops, with Ukrainian figure skater Dymtro Sharpar recently killed fighting in defence of the city: "I spoke with him several times and I never heard how he is going to protect sports from war propaganda if he returns Russian athletes to international competitions," said Zelenskyy during a video address on his Twitter account.
"There is no such thing as neutrality when a war like this is going on and we know how often tyrannis try to use sports for their ideological interests. It is obvious that any neutral flag of Russian athletes is stained with blood.
"I do not want to get into what exactly motivated Mr Bach to promote such an initiative but we will do everything so that the world will protect sports from political and any other influence of the terrorist state which is simply inevitable if Russian athletes participate in competitions and especially at the Paris Olympics."
The President also issued. reminder that the war has taken the lives of hundreds of Ukrainian men and women who had the potential to excel in sport: "Russia must stop aggression and terror and only after that it will be possible to talk about Russian participation in the context of the Olympic Movement. Olympic principles and war are fundamentally opposed to each other."
