MOSCOW, March 3. /TASS/. Decisions of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to bar Russian athletes from international sports tournaments are discriminatory and are in a violation of the principles of humanity, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Chernyshenko told TASS on Thursday.
"We are all under an unprecedented pressure today as many decisions are being made contrary to the common sense," Chernyshenko, who oversees sports, culture and tourism in the Russian government, stated.
"The most important is that we are all witnessing how the humanitarian mission of the sports is being destroyed."
"Today, we learnt that the International Paralympic Committee banned Russian athletes from participating in the [2022 Winter] Paralympics in Beijing," he continued. "This decision is of a discriminatory nature and violates the principles of humanity, including the fact that our athletes are already in Beijing."
"I believe it to be necessary to submit an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport against this decision," he added.
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 today its previous decision, voiced on Wednesday allowing athletes from Russia and Belarus to take part in the much-anticipated quadrennial Winter Paralympics event and banned them from taking part in the 2022 Paralympics.
On February 28, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) issued recommendations to international sports federations to bar athletes from Russia and Belarus from taking part in international tournaments citing over the current situation involving Russia and Ukraine.
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.