"Nothing to lose": Russia's new decision "kicked" ICO's president in the face, who tried to return Russia to the Olympics

Maksym Inshakov Sport06.10.2023 08:21

Stanislav Pozdnyakov, President of the Russian Olympic Committee, made an official statement

Russian Olympic Committee has included the Olympic councils of the Donetsk and Luhansk "people's republics", as well as Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions into its composition, ROC President Stanislav Pozdnyakov said in an interview with local propagandists.

On September 30, 2022, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin announced the annexation of four Ukrainian regions occupied by Russian troops. After Russia's staged "referendums" on the "accession" of the partially occupied Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions, Moscow held a "signing ceremony" with Kremlin-supplied gauleiters.

''Nothing to lose'': Russia's new decision ''kicked'' ICO's president in the face, who tried to return Russia to the Olympics

This decision of the ROC provoked a real hysteria among Russians. Fans from Russia believe that now any participation of Russian athletes in the Olympics is out of the question.

Many assume that the ROC has kicked the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Thomas Bach, right if the face. It is him who is a friend of Putin's and is trying hard to bring Russia back into world sport.

"Bach is trying to help Russia get to the Olympics, and he got slapped," "We are waiting for the full banning of ROC," "Nothing to lose, right?" users write.

Commenters worry that Russia has included national committees of regions without regional centers.

In addition, fans are confident that this will finally put an end to the hopes of athletes from the Russian Federation to participate in the Olympic Games.

As reported by OBOZREVATEL, on June 15, the IOC allowed athletes from Russia to participate in the 2024 Olympics in Paris, subject to certain criteria.

Later, IOC chief Thomas Bach said in an interview on September 4 that Russian and Belarusian athletes who do not support the war in Ukraine and have no ties to the armed forces or other government agencies will be able to compete at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.