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The Russian delegation will soon leave the Winter Paralympics after its exclusion. “It is not worth staying in Beijing,” the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) said in a press release on Friday.
Source: BELGIAN
According to the RPC, it makes no sense to stay in the Chinese capital, as appeals to the International Sports Tribunal (TAS) have little chance of success. The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) may impose an exclusion at its discretion, the RPC said after seeking advice from lawyers. There is no possibility of appeal to the TAS in the statutes of the IPC. The RPC is still keeping the option open to legally challenge the exclusion in the future.
The Russian Paralympic Committee criticizes the “politicized” sanction. “Unfortunately, double standards have become the norm in modern sport,” he said. The RPC also denounced the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which advised on Monday to exclude Russians and Belarusians from international sporting events. That advice “leads to the decline and demise of world sport”.
On Wednesday, the IPC had given Russia and Belarus paralympians the right to start in Beijing after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. They would be allowed to compete under a neutral flag and in addition, the achievements of both countries would not be included in the medal table. But the IPC reversed that decision less than 24 hours later, after other delegations threatened not to participate.
