Deputy Zhurova reminded the IOC about 1984 in response to a call for a boycott of the Friendship Games
The Friendship Games are about sports, not about political statements, said Svetlana Zhurova, Olympic champion in sprint all-around, first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on International Affairs. So, in a conversation with Lenta.ru, she responded to the call of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to boycott competitions in Russia.
“Whoever comes, will come. Everyone who wants to be is important to us. For example, as it was now at the Games of the Future, when 107 countries took part. And they were also warned, they were threatened, they were told that some kind of sanctions would be applied. But the athletes were not afraid, they came and participated. Because they understood that at this moment they were pioneers in shaping the history of new formats in sports,” said Zhurova.
The Friendship Games took place in 1984
The Olympic champion recalled that the Friendship Games had already taken place in 1984, when the states of the socialist camp boycotted the Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
“Then the IOC of that format, and there was also a difficult situation of interaction between the Soviet Union and other countries, did not prohibit anything. At that time, those athletes who took part in the Friendship Games also came to the Olympics in Los Angeles. No one disqualified anyone,” she noted.
Now those who want to take part are intimidated. They say they will find mechanisms to disqualify these athletes
Features of the Friendship Games format
Zhurova said that the Friendship Games are commercial competitions that will be held according to the rules of all international federations.
“Doping control will also be ensured. We are now testing our athletes. We continue to take all anti-doping rules into account. Because we understand that this is extremely important. Therefore, being afraid that something will be wrong here is wrong,” the deputy said.
Everything is possible in this world. I wouldn’t be surprised if they write to someone personally and say that if you go, we will figure out how to remove you from the rest of the competition. And a number of athletes can really get scared
“Saying these are games [президента России Владимира] Putin – this sounds quite strange. Because these are the games of Russia, these are the games of the fans, these are the games of all the countries that will come. These are competitions all over the world, that’s why they are called the Friendship Games,” concluded the Olympic champion.
Earlier, the IOC made a statement about the upcoming Friendship Games in Russia. The organization accused Moscow of politicizing sports, violating the Olympic Charter and disrespecting athletes.
In addition, the IOC indirectly called for a boycott of the Friendship Games, hinting that athletes should not participate in them. However, there is no mention of any possible consequences of this.
Source: Lenta
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