MOSCOW, March 22. /TASS/. The Friendship Games organizing committee is not worried that athletes may refuse to travel to Russia to compete in the tournament, the committee’s director general Alexey Sorokin told reporters.

On Tuesday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) called on foreign athletes and governments to refrain from participating in the Russia-hosted Friendship Games, describing the competition as politicized.

"Those who initially had no plans to come, will not come, but those who care about sports will come anyway," Sorokin noted. "We are trying to explain to everyone where things stand. This is a commercial competition and we are looking forward to welcoming strong athletes so that the competition is real. There is good prize money and there isn’t any political motive, so we don’t see any danger at all," he added.

The World Friendship Games will take place in Moscow and Yekaterinburg on September 15-29.

In November 2023, the IOC sent a letter to national Olympic committees recommending that they not participate in the Friendship Games. Later, World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Director General Olivier Niggli said that the organization was concerned about the Friendship Games in Russia. He noted that Russia had no right to hold such events due to the Russian Anti-Doping Agency’s (RUSADA) non-compliance with the WADA Anti-Doping Code.