Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson has welcomed the decision to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from the Winter Paralympics and hopes Ukraine will top the medal table in Beijing.
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) initially said athletes from those countries could compete under a neutral flag despite the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, a decision Grey-Thompson called a “cop-out” and “virtue signalling”.
And the 16-time Paralympic medallist believes a number of countries would have boycotted the Games if the IPC had not performed a U-turn on Thursday.
“I think there would have been governments that would have pulled their teams,” Grey-Thompson said. “A lot of Paralympic Committees are funded through government money so the countries have the power to do that. I think NPCs (National Paralympic Committees) and individual athletes would have done it.
“I’ve never believed in boycotts, I’ve never supported them. I don’t think they do any good and it’s the athletes that come out worst. The administrators keep their jobs and politics keep going and I think athletes need to have a platform, but this is a completely different situation.
“It’s hard for the IPC because they are right on the eve of the games. It’s OK for the IOC and FIFA to make big statements when there’s not a big event going on. But I think just the pressure they had in the last 24 hours and the tension in the village meant it wasn’t going to be tenable for so many reasons.”
I don’t think I’ve ever said anything quite like this, but I hope Ukraine tops the medal table and it’s just a teeny, tiny bit of a shining light for them back in Ukraine. I would really love to see that
IPC president Andrew Parsons said 83 athletes would now be unable to compete in Beijing, but the decision was taken because of the threat of widespread withdrawals from other countries as well as concerns about safety.
“This (situation) doesn’t fill me with any great joy,” Grey-Thompson added. “I hope the Russian and Belarus athletes can leave the village safely and the Games continue.
“I was pretty undiplomatic when I called the original decision to let them compete a cop-out. It’s just virtue-signalling to cover up their logos.
“The reality is you can’t have a Games overshadowed by this. The IPC, IOC talk about unity and values and all these things and if you’re going to take all the good stuff – and there are amazingly good things about sport – you’ve got to take tough decisions when it counts.
“I feel so much sympathy for the Russian athletes because some of them may not have wanted to compete. I don’t know what they know about what’s going on, their media is not like other countries.
“I don’t think I’ve ever said anything quite like this, but I hope Ukraine tops the medal table and it’s just a teeny, tiny bit of a shining light for them back in Ukraine. I would really love to see that.”
