MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia is traditionally one of the top Olympic medal winners, but many Russians are likely to ignore the Paris Games because Russians and Belarusians cannot take part under their national flags under a ban imposed over the war in Ukraine.
Russia and the former Soviet Union combined are second to the United States in the number of gold medals won at the Olympics, but only 15 Russians will compete in France – and will do so as neutrals.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has banned the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) for recognising regional Olympic councils for Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine that Russia claims as its own – Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
Russians and Belarusians can compete at the Games only as individuals with no flag, and had to pass a screening process designed to root out anyone who has publicly supported the war or military.
Russia, which sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in February 2022 under what Moscow calls a “special operation”, has denounced the IOC measure as politically motivated.
The IOC said Russia’s move to recognise the regional Olympic councils was a breach of the Olympic Charter because it violated the territorial integrity of the National Olympic of Ukraine.
In Russia, the IOC restrictions are seen by many as undermining the Olympic Charter’s stance against any form of discrimination against a country or person on grounds of race, religion, politics, gender or otherwise.
“The very meaning of the Olympics is gone, has sunk into oblivion,” Anastasia, a Moscow resident who refused to give her surname name, told Reuters.
She said she would not be watching the Games, which are not being shown on state television but can be found online.
“The Olympics were originally created as a unification of countries, but in this context this is some kind of obscurantism, not a unification, and everything has turned upside down,” she said.
That view was repeated by several Russians in interviews with Reuters in Moscow before the Games opening ceremony.
Russian officials accuse the West of trying to “cancel” the world’s biggest country and its culture, say such efforts are doomed to failure.
‘NO ONE TO ROOT FOR’
Valery Arkhipov, president of the union of collectors of Russia, has a vast collection of Olympic merchandise, mostly from the 1980 Moscow Games. But without Russia competing this year, he sees no point in watching.
“I have other things to do,” he said. “The Olympics are far away, our athletes are not participating or are participating under a neutral flag, it’s not very interesting anymore.”
“I think that all the principles of the Olympic movement have been completely violated and that interest (in the Olympics) is quite weak,” he said.
The 1980 Moscow Games were boycotted by 66 countries including the United States following the 1979 Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
Among Russians interviewed by Reuters, a few said they would try to watch the sporting drama online.
“We plan to broadcast the opening of the Olympics, and the entire Olympics in general,” said Kristina, the manager of a sports bar. “There are a sufficient number of guests who are interested, who watch sports, who watch the Olympics. So undoubtedly it will be broadcast in our pub.”
For others, the Olympic Games have no interest if Russia is not officially represented.
“I won’t watch because Russia won’t be there,” said Maria, a Moscow resident who declined to give her last name. “It’s frustrating and unpleasant. You want to root for your own people, and if they are not there, there is no one to root for.”
(Writing by Guy Faulconbridge, Editing by Andrew Osborn and Timothy Heritage)
