Canadian Olympians are strongly against supporting athletes from Russia
Some Canadian athletes demand no support for athletes from Russia and Belarus participating in the 2024 Olympics as "neutrals".
Some of Canada's Olympians are publicly demanding that the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) reverse its position and withdraw support of Russian and Belarusian athletes participating at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
"We want them to get the message that there is no middle ground here. You're either on one side or the other. And what part of history do you want to be on? We're here to be heard and to make the COC listen to us," retired rugby player Jen Kish, one of the Olympians who signed the letter.
In the letter, the athletes say allowing neutral Russian and Belarusian participation "sends a message that the COC is no longer concerned with Russia's invasion of Ukraine."
A year ago, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was among the first international bodies to condemn Russia's invasion of Ukraine and recommended sports organizations ban Russian athletes from international competitions.
A year later, in January 2023, the IOC Executive Council stated that an athlete cannot be excluded from a competition solely on the basis of his or her passport. After all, excluding athletes solely because of their nationality contradicts the basic principles of the Olympic movement.
The full article is only available to members of the Immigrant.Today community. Log in to your account to read it for free.
