IOC temporarily suspends ROC until further notice
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has temporarily suspended the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC). This was announced by IOC Communications Director Mark Adams, quoted by RIA Novosti.
Adams said that the reason was the inclusion of representative offices of the DPR, LPR, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions in the ROC, and called this a violation of the territorial integrity of Ukraine. “The ROC can no longer act as a National Olympic Committee (NOC) and receive funds from the IOC,” he added. The suspension will remain in effect until further notice.
The Olympic councils of four new regions of Russia were included in the ROC at a meeting of the organization’s executive committee on October 5. After this, the head of the NOC of Ukraine, Vadim Gutzeit, turned to IOC President Thomas Bach with a request to impose sanctions against the ROC.
On March 28, the IOC recommended that Belarusians and Russians who do not support the special operation in Ukraine be allowed to compete in neutral status. However, athletes associated with the armed forces or security forces of their countries are recommended not to be allowed to participate in tournaments.
At the end of February 2022, many sports organizations banned Russians from participating in tournaments on the recommendation of the IOC. At the same time, in some disciplines, such as tennis, MMA and chess, Russian athletes were not excluded and continued to perform in a neutral status.
Source: Lenta
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