The International Olympic Committee is leaving open the possibility for the Russian Olympic team to rejoin the games after it was banned from competing in the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics due to the country’s invasion of Ukraine.
Now, incoming IOC President Kirsty Coventry is indicating that Russia may be allowed to rejoin the next Olympic games.
“I am, but I think you have to take each situation into account,” she told Sky News in an interview when asked if she was against banning countries from the Olympics over conflicts.
Coventry reasoned that the ban was hypocritical, given the lack of bans on African countries despite several wars on the continent. Brutal wars waged by countries, including Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan, and Rwanda did not result in any bans. Each country participated in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
The incoming IOC president argued in favor of a task force that would provide a framework for dealing with countries involved in conflicts.
“What I would like to do is set up a task force where this task force tries to set out some policies and some guiding frameworks that we as the movement can use to make decisions when we are brought into conflicts,” she said.
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Coventry said the task force would have a “discussion” about whether Russia would be allowed to compete in the 2025 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, just 11 months away.
The IOC’s new approach is likely to be backed by President Donald Trump, who discussed using sports as a way to warm relations with Russia in his recent call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
