The Olympic committees of Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden and Denmark have backed calls for the ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes to be upheld for the Paris 2024 Games.
In a joint statement the Olympic committees of the five Nordic nations stated clearly that now was not a right time for athletes from Russia and Belarus to be allowed to compete.
This comes after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said Russians and Belarusians may be allowed to compete as neutrals with Ukraine threatening to boycott the Paris Olympics if that plan goes ahead.
Earlier on, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Poland all voiced their opposition to the inclusion of athletes from Russia and Belarus, who had been banned following the former’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 with belief that it would be unacceptable for athletes from the two countries to participate in 2024 and that as many as 40 countries could boycott the next Olympics.
The Nordic Olympic and Paralympic Committees and Confederations of Sports pointed out that they wanted to reaffirm their steadfast support with the Ukrainian people and the demand for peace.
The IOC called on federations to exclude athletes from Russia and Belarus following the invasion of Ukraine and banned the nations from the Winter Paralympics in March 2022 – though athletes were allowed to compete under a neutral flag.
Further sanctions were announced across other sports, including football, rugby, Formula 1, cycling and swimming, while Russian and Belarusian tennis players were banned from playing at Wimbledon.
However, the IOC said last month that it would explore a pathway for athletes from the two nations to compete at Paris 2024, a move that has since been criticised in a joint statement from Athletes for Ukraine and athlete association Global Athlete believing the decision shows the IOC endorses Russia’s brutal war and invasion of Ukraine.
The UK government condemned the plan as a world away from the reality of war while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says allowing Russia to compete in Paris would amount to showing that terror is somehow acceptable.