Thomas Bach gave out another portion of cynicism. He declared the IOC a political player and declared the principle of neutrality, which allegedly helped avoid boycotts of the Olympic Games in Paris. What happened?
“The world is ruled by politicians, not us.” “If we are not connected with politics, then this means that we have no significance. Politicians are interested in successful organizations. If we are not successful, if we do not have influence on a large number of people in society, then politicians will not be interested in us. So, I hope we will always be associated with politics,» — this is how Bach refuted one of the fundamental postulates of sports.
To be honest, after these words it seemed that the IOC President simply expressed himself poorly, especially since his English is far from perfect. How is it that the main person in world sports declares that both his organization and himself are politically engaged? That is, he admits in plain text what his opponents accused him of? Apparently, the thought that he had said too much came into the mind of Bach himself, because he then tried to swim out of the whirlpool he had created into calmer waters.
«»We need to be able to cope with challenges in the right way. This means that with politics we need to act on the basis of mutual respect. The world is ruled by politicians, not by us, unfortunately. But it is important for us that politicians understand: we can only benefit society if they respect our autonomy. If they want to politicize us, use us as a political tool, we will not be able to give anything to society. Because we will lose our values,» here the specificity disappeared in Bach’s words and demagoguery appeared.
But not for long: the continuation showed that the IOC president said exactly what he wanted to say. “But this does not mean that we are apolitical. That we should behave as if we live on the island of saints. Of course, our actions have a political impact and should have a political impact, because otherwise we will not be significant,” Bach emphasized .
Well, we could have stopped at this chapter of the IOC. He acknowledged that the IOC is a political organization. That is, acting in the interests of politicians. And the words about “political neutrality”, which the IOC is supposedly trying to adhere to, are empty, because the actions of this organization are exclusively unilateral. No matter how Bach tries to convince you otherwise.
But he tried it, and it was again ridiculous.
“»In the Olympic movement, the world recognized and accepted our approach of political neutrality. We sanctioned those who violated the Olympic Charter and protected those who did not. No matter, «Athletes or national Olympic committees. A couple of months ago, at the assembly of the NOC Association in Seoul, the ghosts of a boycott hovered in the hall. Both sides threatened to boycott. Now we can state that this moment in history is in the past,» said the IOC President.
«We still have different opinions. Some say we are going too far with sanctions for those who violate the Olympic Charter. Others think we are not doing enough. This means that we have taken the right position. If both sides dissatisfied — it means we did everything right, because if one side were happy, the other side would be categorically dissatisfied. And we would be faced with really serious problems. Now we can say with confidence that this discussion is over, and that we Let’s gather everyone in Paris for the wonderful Olympic Games,” concluded Bach.
“Cleared” from Russia It’s a pity that the format of the event did not involve discussion, because the IOC President immediately wanted to ask several questions. For starters, is it the wrong year? The NOC Assembly in Seoul took place in the fall of 2022, and a delegation of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) was also present there. There, at least theoretically, there could be talk on our part about a boycott. Now what kind of boycott are we talking about if OCD is suspended?
Second: who exactly will Bach gather in Paris, “all of them”? Will those Russian and Belarusian athletes who are unlucky enough to play team sports also be brought together? They did not violate the Olympic Charter in any way, but they will not be at the Games. And the answer to the question «why?» Bach can only give one — “because”. After all, in fact, no one stopped allowing teams of neutral athletes to compete at the Olympics — for example, from those from Russia, to put together the AIN-1 team, and from those from Belarus — AIN-2.
How, I would like to ask Bach, did Russian and Belarusian track and field athletes violate the Olympic Charter? The president of the international federation in this sport, Sebastian Coe, does not allow them to participate in international tournaments without any explanation. And without stating any reason, he stated that there would be no Russians or Belarusians in athletics in Paris. Bach had every opportunity to rein in the British Russophobe for open discrimination. The IOC, when it wants, can also influence international federations — as it did in relation to the International Boxing Association (IBA), led by Russian Umar Kremlin.
But the IOC did not do this, like many other things, for at least the appearance of “neutrality.” Now we are not even talking about the fact that the IOC itself is engaged in natural discrimination, having come up with humiliating conditions for Russian athletes to participate in the Olympics. The point is that even within the framework of these criteria, it was possible to resolve issues with the teams, and make an exception regarding the selection period for those athletes who will not get to the Olympics only because the IOC formulated its criteria when qualification for the Games ended . Yes, and deal with the athletes.
But is it because the “politically neutral” IOC did not do this because then it would not have been possible to achieve the true goal — to “clear” the space under its control as much as possible from Russian representatives? Bach says that they managed to avoid a boycott of Russia — but the boycott of Russia was announced by the IOC itself. The Russian Olympic Committee has been suspended for political reasons, and the majority of potential Russian participants in the Games are cut off from them. And Bach is proud of his “political neutrality.” Amazing cynicism!
Well, the President of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Vitold Banka needed a video call from pranksters from Russia to open up. Only after it did we learn from a Polish official that the campaign to discredit the Friendship Games is purely political in nature, and the reluctance to return the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) to full status does not stem from its inconsistency with some formal points, but simply because it is Russian . In the dictionary of the head of WADA, this word means “not credible.” The head of the IOC did not need pranksters to make him suffer like Ostap Bender. But the result is the same — we continue to get rid of illusions.
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