Russia and Belarus not invited to 2024 Olympics

The International Olympic Committee did not issue invitations to Russia and Belarus to the 2024 Olympics in Paris, stated the IOC website.

“[Invitation lists] excludes the NOC of Guatemala, which is currently suspended, as well as the NOCs of Russia and Belarus. The IOC has previously announced that it will take its decision on the participation of individual, neutral athletes with a Russian or Belarusian passport … at the appropriate time,” the committee stated.

Such wording implies that, despite the invitation of Russia and Belarus, the IOC still plans to consider the possibility of admitting athletes from these countries under a neutral flag. In March, the International Committee already put forward such an idea. At that time, the initiative caused outrage in Ukraine and most Western countries.

The Ukrainian World Congress is conducting an international advocacy campaign to prevent Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris, even under a neutral flag.

“We are confident that the Olympic Games should not be used for whitewashing Russia’s genocidal war in Ukraine, for concealing its crimes against humanity, or for promoting the tolerance of war and destruction,” reads a letter signed by UWC First Vice President Stefan Romaniw and Chair of the UWC World Sport Committee Renata Roman to the President of the International Olympic Committee Thomas Bach.