Vladimir Putin says banned Russian athletes are victims of "ethnic discrimination"

Russian President Vladimir Putin called the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) attitude towards Russian athletes ethnic discrimination at the "Russia - country of sports" forum in Perm, Gazeta.ru reported.

"Thanks to some leaders of the modern International Olympic Committee, we have learnt that an invitation to the Games is not an unconditional right of the best athletes, but some kind of privilege and that it can be earned not by sporting results, but by some political gestures that have nothing to do with sport at all, and that the Games themselves can be used as a tool of political pressure against people who have nothing to do with politics. In fact, Russian ethnic discrimination," Putin said.

At a meeting of the IOC executive committee on March 28, it was recommended that Russians be allowed to compete in neutral status if the athletes were not actively engaged in supporting the fighting. Athletes representing security agencies and the armed forces will not be allowed to compete.

On October 12, the IOC announced the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) until further notice. At the same time, the IOC noted that it reserves the right to make a decision on the admission of Russian athletes to the Olympic Games - 2024 in Paris at the necessary time.