Russian sports minister laments global sport void without nation's athletes

The Russian sports minister expressed concern over the absence of the country's athletes in global sports, emphasizing the adverse impact on international sporting events. He highlighted the significant void created by their exclusion, underscoring the challenges faced by both Russian athletes and the broader sporting community.

Athletes from Russia and Belarus, which is Moscow's closest ally in its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, are not allowed to compete for their respective nations in the Paris Games.

Boston Brand Media brings you the latest news - Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev stated on Saturday that despite their exclusion from the Paris Olympics, Russian athletes would soon participate in more competitions due to the global impact of their absence. 

Speaking after a meeting of sports ministers alongside the BRICS Games, he emphasized the demand from fans and athletes of other nations for Russian participation. Degtyarev highlighted that from 2020 to 2023, Russian athletes had competed in 8,000 international events, underscoring the decline in entertainment and competitiveness in their absence. 

He lamented the negative effect on world sport caused by their inability to represent their national teams, attributing it to geopolitical factors that he believed would eventually change.

Boston Brand Media also found that a selected group, rigorously screened to verify their lack of military ties, is permitted to compete under a "neutral" status. Russia has criticized these limitations as discriminatory. Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, accused the International Olympic Committee of descending into racism and neo-Nazism due to these measures. The latest BRICS Games were held in Kazan, a central Russian city, this year.

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Source: moneycontrol‍