Sports Minister Degtyarev: rapprochement with IOC has begun, time to end insults

Russia and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) have begun to converge in their views on the participation of Russian athletes in competitions. This was announced by Mikhail Degtyarev, head of the Russian Ministry of Sport, at the All-Russian Forum of New Media in Moscow on November 18.

"The convergence of positions has begun, you have probably noticed the changes in rhetoric. I believe it is time to end accusations and insults, we need to start rapprochement between our Olympic Committee and the IOC," he said.

According to him, the dialog with the IOC representatives is conducted through various channels and in a non-public format. Degtyarev noted that he personally meets with the committee officials.

In addition, the minister recalled the illegality of recommendations to allow athletes from Russia to participate in neutral status. According to Degtyarev, he is surrounded by the strongest lawyers in the process of working on the return of Russians to competitions at the international level.

He added that the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) will soon be strengthened as well.

Earlier, July 26, IOC Vice-President Nicole Hevertz said that it's important for the organization to see the Russians and Belarusians as participants in the Olympic movement. Then she said that 60 athletes out of 187 candidates were allowed to participate in the Olympic Games in Paris from July 26 to August 11, of which 32 people (15 Russians and 17 Belarusians) eventually agreed to participate.

At the same time, on December 8, 2023, the IOC allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in the Olympics under strict conditions because of the special operation of the Russian Federation to protect Donbass. In particular, the athletes could not participate in team competitions, speak in support of the special operation, sign contracts with the armed forces and national security agencies, show any national symbols.

Commenting on this, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova emphasized that Russian athletes should decide for themselves whether to agree to participate in the Games under such conditions.