MOSCOW, March 3. /TASS/. Russia is drafting a lawsuit with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against a decision of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to bar Russian athletes from the 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing, Russian Sports Minister Oleg Matytsin said on Thursday.
"We are currently in work to establish our legal position to file lawsuits on the protection of our athletes’ rights, against the discrimination of athletes based on their ethnicity and the use of sports as a tool of a political pressure," Matytsin said.
"Today’s decision of the International Paralympic Committee to bar our team is a blatant violation of athletes’ rights and a manipulation of the Olympic Charter and human lives’ values in pursue of political goals," the minister said.
"It is extremely inadmissible to put in action any type of sanctions in regard to Paralympians, who have already arrived for the tournament," he continued.
"We are in a swift regime drafting a lawsuit for it [CAS] to be considered before the Opening Ceremony and the actual start of the [2022 Winter Paralympic] Games]," Matytsin told journalists.
The IPC announced a decision on Thursday morning to ban athletes from Russia and Belarus from their participation in the 2022 Winter Paralympic Games, which kick off this week in China’s Beijing.
The world’s governing body of the Paralympic sports revised its previous decision, voiced on Wednesday allowing athletes from Russia and Belarus to take part in the much-anticipated quadrennial Winter Paralympics event.
IPC President Andrew Parson said in a statement on Thursday that: "Ensuring the safety and security of athletes is of paramount importance to us and the situation in the athlete villages is escalating and has now become untenable."
"First and foremost, we have a duty as part of the Paralympic mission, enshrined in the constitution, to guarantee and supervise the organization of successful Paralympic Games, to ensure that in sport practiced within the Paralympic Movement the spirit of fair play prevails, violence is banned, the health risk of the athletes is managed and fundamental ethical principles are upheld."
"With this in mind, and in order to preserve the integrity of these Games and the safety of all participants, we have decided to refuse the athlete entries from RPC and NPC Belarus," he added.
The 2022 Winter Paralympic Games in the Chinese capital of Beijing are scheduled for March 4-13. During the 128th IOC session in Kuala Lumpur on July 31, 2015, Beijing was chosen to host the 2022 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games making the Chinese capital the first city ever to host both the Summer Olympic and Paralympic Games (in 2008) as well as the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games (in 2022).
Russian Paralympians at Beijing-2022
Due to international sanctions against Russian sports, athletes from Russia were obliged to participate in the 2022 Winter Paralympic Games under the flag and logo of the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) instead of the Russian national flag and state emblem.
The national anthem of Russia was also under sanctions at the Paralympic Games in China. The First Piano Concerto by Pyotr Tchaikovsky was selected to be played at awarding ceremonies for Russian Paralympians in Beijing.