No Russian judoka will set foot on the Parisian tatami during the Olympic Games (July 26-August 11). Friday, in a Press releasethe Russian Judo Federation announced that it would not send any athletes to Paris, to protest against “humiliating conditions” concerning the number of authorized athletes.
“Humiliating conditions”
While 17 Russian judokas had managed to qualify directly for the Paris Games, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) only authorized four of them to participate, through its third list of athletes reinstated in the Olympic competitions. All Russian and Belarusian athletes were banned after the start of the invasion in Ukraine in February 2022, before the IOC announced their gradual reintegration, under a neutral banner, under strict conditions and immediately excluding team events. .
“In this situation, the Presidium of the Russian Judo Federation made a unanimous decision: the Russian national judo team will not accept humiliating conditions and will not participate in the Paris Games with the composition proposed by the officials of the Committee Olympic international”, reacted the Russian Judo Federation, denouncing an “unsporting decision” and calling for “reform of the IOC”.
An advantage for Riner
This decision will shake up the Olympic tables. “Everyone can understand that without Russian athletes, the judo competitions at the Games would be incomplete and the champions would not have the satisfaction of winning a ‘weakened’ Olympic tournament,” the Russian Federation believes.
Teddy Riner’s picture is brightening. The double Olympic champion avoids a fight against Inal Tasoev, 2023 world champion in the over 100 kg category, whom he could have met in the quarter-finals or semi-finals.
2024-06-28 22:45:17
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