Bortnichuk reacts to Russian threats. Sharply. “Hard, nasty and disgusting”

– The IOC sins with naivety, once again speaking of some kind of neutrality. The Russians were supposed to be neutral at several Olympics due to doping scandals, while Vladimir Putin applauded them from the stands as his own – said the Minister of Sport – Kamil Bortniczuk in an interview on TVP Info.

– They were supposed to perform without a flag, and in fact they made a flag out of their entire outfit. Strange behavior of the IOC and belief that this time it will be different – he added.

In this way, Bortnichuk commented on one of the hottest topics of recent days, ie the potential participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in next year’s Olympic Games in Paris. A week ago, the IOC announced that it was considering allowing competitors from these countries to compete after meeting certain conditions.

Russians and Belarusians would perform under a neutral flag and without their own anthems. Athletes would also respect the Olympic Charter and “not act to the detriment of the IOC’s peacekeeping mission.” In short: they would not support the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has been going on for almost a year.

– We have no doubts that the Russians should not participate in the Olympic Games in Paris, unless the war is over by then and Ukraine has negotiated a satisfactory peace. However, there is little evidence of this, Bortniczuk said.

Minister of Sport: We do not want Russians at the Olympics

– They have nothing to look for in Europe, so an idea emerged that they should obtain Olympic qualifications from Asian federations. I agree that they have a cultural place there, but we don’t want to see them at the Olympic Games at all. The position of the IOC is surprising. But the position of about 40 ministers of sport remains unchanged.

Many countries did not like the position of the IOC. Criticism on this subject was also expressed by, among others, Ukrainians and Latvians who threatened that if Russians and Belarusians took part in the Olympic Games, they would not come to Paris.

In an interview with TVP Info, Bortniczuk also referred to Russian suggestions that countries that block the participation of athletes from two countries should be punished. “In the current situation, the national teams of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia should go to Paris without the flag, not the Russians,” we read on the Sport-express.ru portal.

– From Russia’s perspective, it is not the one who breaks the Olympic peace and attacks a sovereign nation that is to blame. We are dealing with tough, nasty and disgusting Russian behavior. Bringing up arguments such as non-compliance with the Olympic Charter is embarrassing, Bortniczuk said.

– This is not the first time that I have been attacked by the Russian press. We must wake the world up against the Russians’ attempt to return through the back door to world sport and to the most important event, the Olympic Games, he concluded.