"How does this look like neutrality?" Kharlan criticizes the IOC for allowing Russians to participate in the 2024 Olympics

Ukrainian fencer Olga Kharlan has criticized the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for allowing Russian athletes to participate in the Paris Games in the so-called neutral status. Our compatriot noted that many athletes from the Russian Federation do not meet the conditions and openly support the war.

Harlan said this in an interview with the Spanish edition of AS. The Beijing 2008 Olympic champion emphasized that the IOC simply shifted responsibility to international federations, which often turn a blind eye to violations by representatives of the aggressor country.

"I cannot agree with this. First, because the state continues to fund these people. Secondly, the athletes who acted as neutrals returned home and celebrated with the flags of their country. How does this look like neutrality? Many athletes who are considered neutral openly support the war and the army. For me, with this decision, they are turning a blind eye to the real facts," Kharlan said.

Earlier it became known that the entire Russian fencing team will miss the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. Also, Kharlan's rivals Olga Nikitina and Sofia Pozdnyakova, who was demanded to give up her 2020 Olympic gold medals, announced their refusal to go to France.

As reported by OBOZ.UA, Olga Kharlan supported the IOC's decision to ban Russian and Belarusian "neutral athletes" from participating in the opening ceremony of the 2024 Olympics.

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