The International Paralympic Committee will meet on Wednesday to make a decision on whether Russian athletes will be able to compete at the Winter Paralympics in Beijing.
Pressure has continued to mount to ban the Russians from the event, following their country’s recent invasion of neighbouring Ukraine.
The International Olympic Committee yesterday called for all athletes representing Russia in any sport to be banned from participating in any sporting event, and this month’s Games in Beijing has been noted as a key talking point.
Seventy-one athletes are set to compete for the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) in China, while Ukraine’s 20 competitors are yet to arrive due to the effect of the conflict.
Despite the event kicking off in just three days, the IPC revealed in a statement that the earliest they were able to meet to make a decision is Wednesday due to travel arrangements.
Craig Spence - a spokesperson for the committee - said: “We’re aware of the views of everyone.
“Clearly, we’d love the focus to be on sport, but at the moment that’s not the focus.
“We’re in regular dialogue with Ukraine and we’re working hard behind the scenes to get them here. The health and welfare of the delegation is our priority.”
If the Russians are passed to take part in Beijing it is expected that a number of nations will refuse to compete against them in a stance of solidarity with Ukraine.
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One nation that has a strong stance against the RPC is the UK, after The British Olympic Association called for them to be banned from the upcoming Games.
Their statement said: “The BOA demands the immediate exclusion of Russia and Belarus from the international sports family.
”We call on sports federations to ban athletes representing Russia and Belarus from competitions for the time being.”
A ban would be yet another strong sporting sanction against the Russians since the invasion, after both the UEFA Champions League final and the Russian Grand Prix were taken away from Vladamir Putin’s state.
Russia’s national football teams have also been banned from competing at any level by FIFA, meaning their men’s team’s all-important World Cup play-off against Poland will not go ahead.
