Incoming IOC president plans to begin negotiations on Russian national team's return to Olympics

Sky News reported the information.

Kirsty Coventry said she did not see the consistency in the fact that Russia was singled out while conflicts were taking place on her own continent.

"We have conflicts in Africa and they're horrific at the moment. So this is not going away, sadly," she said.

When asked if she was against countries being banned from the Olympics because of conflict, Coventry replied: "I am, but I think you have to take each situation into account."

She also said that she wants to create a working group that will try to lay out some policies and guidelines that the IOC can use to make decisions when they are involved in conflicts.

In addition, the incoming president noted that their duty is to make sure that all athletes are safe. And the IOC protects and supports them during the Olympic Games.

"But ultimately I believe that it's best for our movement to ensure that we have all athletes represented," Coventry added.

The next Summer Olympics will be held in 2028 in Los Angeles, while the Winter Games in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo are less than 11 months away. When the new IOC president was asked directly whether Russia would return by then, she responded, "We're going to have that discussion with a collective group …with the taskforce."

Background

Back in 2023, then-IOC President Thomas Bach supported the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the 2024 Olympics, despite Ukraine's warning to boycott the Games. He also argued that suspending these athletes from international competitions was a violation of human rights.

In March 2023, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine decided to boycott competitions featuring athletes from Russia or Belarus, and Ukrainian athletes did not participate in tournaments where representatives of hostile countries were competing.

In June of the same year, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) adopted a resolution urging the IOC not to allow athletes from Belarus and Russia to participate in the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris, even under a neutral flag.

A new order was issued by the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine in July 2023, stating that Ukrainian athletes could participate in tournaments only if Russians and Belarusians were competing in a neutral status.

In early December 2023, the IOC agreed to allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to participate in the Olympic Games. In response, the Ministry of Youth and Sports of Ukraine announced it was considering a boycott of the Games in Paris.

By the end of December, it became known that Russians and Belarusians would not be allowed to participate in equestrian competitions at the 2024 Olympic Games.