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Ukraine’s sports chief slammed the International Olympic Committee for ushering Russian athletes back into the fold even as Moscow continues to wage its war on Ukraine.
The IOC announced last week it had “provisionally lifted the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee,” ending a ban that has been in place since the Kremlin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in the winter of 2022 and paving the way for Russian athletes to return to the Games.
Ukrainian Sports Minister Matviy Bidnyi said in an interview that the IOC is “effectively functioning as a pressure release valve” for Russia.
“Why now? I have no answer on this question. I can’t see any reason for it,” said Bidnyi, a former bodybuilder. “Undermining the collective pressure that the international community has been building against the aggressor … it’s not a very honorable role for this organization.”
