MOSCOW, November 20. /TASS/. Russian sports as a whole are handling pressure from international sports organizations well, Alexander Karelin, a member of the Russian Federation Council (the upper house of the parliament), told TASS on Monday.

"I believe that Russian sports is coping well with the pressure exerted by international organizations," Karelin, who is a three-time Olympic champion in Greco-Roman wrestling, said speaking at the Russia EXPO in Moscow.

"The most important thing is for it [sports] to draw attention within the country," Karelin continued. "We are mobilizing our reserves and filling in the gaps in certain athletic competitions, where the link between generations was broken."

The International Russia EXPO is running from November 4, 2023 to April 12, 2024 at the Exhibition of Achievements of the National Economy (VDNKh) in Moscow. Its goal is to demonstrate Russia’s major achievements in various sectors of the economy, with all 89 Russian regions participating. TASS is the general media partner of Russia EXPO.

IOC sanctions against Russia, Belarus

On February 28, 2022, 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 Moscow’s special military operation in Ukraine as the reason.

Following the IOC’s recommendations in late February 2022, the majority of global sports federations decided to bar athletes from Russia and Belarus from all international sports tournaments.

In late March, 2023, the IOC recommended to permit individual athletes from Russia and Belarus to take part in international sports tournaments, but only under certain conditions. Specifically, athletes from the two countries should not be "actively supporting" Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine and must compete under a neutral status. Russia and Belarus were also banned from participating in international team events.

On July 26, 2023, the IOC extended invitations to the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris to 203 National Olympic Committees. Russia and Belarus did not receive invitations. The IOC explained later that there was no deadline regarding the issue of Russian and Belarusian athletes’ participation.

The 2024 Summer Olympic Games will be hosted by the French capital of Paris between July 26 and August 11.