Shantarovich: there’s now unprecedented pressure on IOC from politicians

Political circles in the West are putting unprecedented pressure on the International Olympic Committee – as stated in an interview with sport5.by by Honoured Coach of Belarus in kayaking and canoeing Vladimir Shantarovich

When asked what he thinks about the IOC recommendations on the admission of athletes from Belarus and Russia to international starts in a neutral status, the famous coach said, “I think that we need to compete. Though as neutral athletes, but it’s still necessary to compete. Regrettably, they again drive us into politics. Athletes and coaches must sign something, declare something. It’s more like chaos. Moreover, this is a gross violation of the Olympic Charter. There are about 70 armed conflicts in the world, and the emphasis is on only one. Now there is unprecedented pressure on the IOC from politicians. And how does Thomas Bach react to this now? On the one hand, he declares that politics should not interfere with sports, on the other hand, he allows this interference with his softness. And in a good way, I could say to those federations that refuse to participate in competitions along with Russians and Belarusians: 'If you don’t want to, don’t compete. It is your right'. It’s sport. But Thomas Bach does not take this position; he is neither fish nor fowl. He led us through this in 2016, when our rowers were suspended. 40 representatives of the team wrote letters to him demanding to explain why they disqualified the strongest rowers in the world. He never answered.”

Vladimir Shantarovich also underlined that hostility towards athletes from certain countries is kindled exclusively by politicians, “We held a training camp in Turkiye in December. We communicated normally with Ukrainians there. Everything was great. What prejudice can there be? We have been friends, and we will be friends, as we wrote SMS, we will continue to write them. The politicisation of this issue is sheer nonsense. Sports are designed to unite, not divide. How could it all be crushed?”