Dear athletes,
The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) is calling for the immediate exclusion of Russia and Belarus from the international sports family until further notice. We call on the international sports federations to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from competitions for the time being and to suspend Russian and Belarusian officials from their offices.
Global sanctions in all areas of society are all the more effective the more social actors participate. The goal of ending the war in Ukraine as quickly as possible justifies this step, although it also affects athletes who are not responsible for this war. Sport must also fulfill its responsibilities here and accept the corresponding restrictions.
The DOSB also intends to set up a fund to provide direct, humanitarian support for Ukrainian athletes.
With these measures, the DOSB is reacting to the military attack on Ukraine. Eight years after invading Crimea, Russia took up arms again just after the Olympic Games ended and just before the start of the Paralympic Games, breaking the Olympic Truce.
The German Olympic Sports Confederation and the German Disabled Sports Association strongly condemn Russia’s attack on Ukraine. We call on Russia to stop the acts of war and recommend our member organizations to suspend participation in competitions and training measures in Russia and the war zones.
As a sign of sympathy and solidarity with the victims of the war in Ukraine, the DOSB recommended that its 90,000 sports clubs observe a minute’s silence at all sporting events last weekend. In addition, the DOSB has supported humanitarian measures such as the admission of Ukrainian boxers by the DBV. We also receive offers of help from business partners, associations and individuals, for which we provide coordination support.
Our thoughts are particularly with the victims and their families. None of us could have imagined that a conflict in Europe could escalate like this again after the experiences of history. That’s why we want to continue to send out common signals from popular and top-class sports in Germany and stand together in the truest sense of the word. Violence and war must have no place.
Our suggestion to hold a minute’s silence was followed in many places in Germany, from running clubs to German championships for track and field athletes to league operations in football and many other sports.
The DOSB will continue to do its part to end the war in Ukraine as quickly as possible and stop Russia’s aggression. We call for solidarity with the people and athletes in Ukraine who are facing war, terror and displacement these days.
Thomas Weikert and Torsten Burmester
