by The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) continues to advocate the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes.
The DOSB informed about this attitude under the impression of the ongoing Russian war of aggression in Ukraine after the meeting of its presidium on Friday.
It stands in contrast to the efforts of individual international professional associations and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to allow Russians and Belarusians to compete again in the foreseeable future and provided certain conditions are met.
The DOSB had commissioned the legal expert Patricia Wiater from the Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg to provide a legal opinion in order to examine the human rights dimension of the issue in detail. According to the DOSB, this is made available to the IOC.
DOSB contradicts IOC President Bach
IOC President Thomas Bach recently stated that an exclusion “because of a passport or place of birth” violates the ban on discrimination and is therefore not sustainable.
Reviewer Wiater comes to an opposite conclusion. “The exclusion of Russian athletes from international sports competitions, despite the associated unequal treatment on the basis of nationality, cannot be classified as a violation of international bans on discrimination and is therefore permissible,” she wrote.
There are several “legitimate purposes” that can be pursued with a prayer of exclusion. One aspect is “reasons for peace policy” when the exclusion of the respective athletes “is intended to counteract the exploitation of sporting events for war propaganda purposes and thereby contribute to the de-escalation of the war of aggression”.
The DOSB also announced that they had exchanged views with member organizations, athletes and business partners. Experts from politics and science were also advised.
The feedback received in this way strengthens our previous position in the Presidium: We are still in favor of the conclusion,” said DOSB President Thomas Weikert: “We will now use these findings, in particular the legal opinion, in which the multidimensional nature of human rights considerations is expressed coming, make available to the IOC for its consultations.”
Decision to exclude Russia at the end of March
The International Fencing Federation (FIE) recently advocated allowing Russians and Belarusians to compete again. The IOC will deal with the fundamental question at the end of March (28th to 30th) at the meeting of its Executive Committee.
“Regardless of the decision by the IOC and the international sports federations regarding re-admission (…), we reject a boycott of international competitions, in particular the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris 2024, out of fundamental considerations,” the DOSB statement said .
A boycott would only affect German athletes “who would represent their only chance to realize their Olympic dream.”
The pressure on the DOSB had grown recently. Demands had become louder from politicians in Berlin that the German umbrella organization should position itself more clearly on the issue.
