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Medvedev criticizes bans on Russian athletes as politically motivated

Currently, sports are "seeing difficult times," Medvedev opined

Russian Presidential First Deputy in Military-Industrial Commission and Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev Ekaterina Shtukina/TASS

Russian Presidential First Deputy in Military-Industrial Commission and Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev

© Ekaterina Shtukina/TASS

MOSCOW, March 25. /TASS/. The deputy chairman of Russia’s Security Council, Dmitry Medvedev, criticized decisions by the International Olympic Committee and other international sports organizations to ban Russian athletes from taking part in tournaments as shameful and politically motivated.

In an interview with Russian media, including TASS, and users of the VKontakte social media network, the politician said, "Their (Russian athletes’ - TASS) not taking part in competitions obviously stems from politically motivated decisions by sports organizations. Shame on them. I mean everybody, including, naturally, the Olympic Committee and its leadership."

Currently, sports are "seeing difficult times," Medvedev opined. "That’s a tremendous ordeal for athletes. It’s very difficult, you getting ready [for a contest] and then being excluded for political reasons," he said. This was how he commented on the future of Russian athletes in the short term.

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