UK condemns Paralympics decision allowing Russians and Belarusians to compete as neutrals in Beijing
Russian and Belarusian athletes at Winter Paralympics will compete under Paralympic flag and will not be included in medal table; International Olympic Committee said earlier this week that Russia and Belarus should be banned from international competitions following invasion of Ukraine
Last Updated: 03/03/22 7:38am
The UK has condemned the decision to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete as neutrals at the Winter Paralympics in Beijing despite the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) said on Wednesday that athletes from Russia and and Belarus would "compete under the Paralympic flag and not be included in the medal table" when the Games start on Friday.
However, UK Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries has called for a complete ban on athletes from those countries following the "barbaric invasion".
Dorries said: ""I'm extremely disappointed in the IPC - this is the wrong decision and I call on them to urgently reconsider.
"They must join the rest of the world in condemning this barbaric invasion by banning Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing.
"We will consider the full range of options in protest of this decision, in consultation with UK Sport and the British Paralympic Association.
"I will also be meeting with my international counterparts this week to discuss how we can respond collectively."
British Paralympic Association 'disappointed' by decision
The British Paralympic Association said: "We are disappointed by the International Paralympic Committee's decision.
"We, like many participating Paralympic nations, already stated that given the magnitude of the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine we cannot see how the participation of Russia or Belarus in the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games is compatible with the objectives of the Paralympic movement.
"We'll be consulting further and reflecting on the implications for ParalympicsGB before making further comment."
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The IPC said it would not hold any events in Russia or Belarus until further notice.
An extraordinary General Assembly will be held this year to vote on whether to make compliance with the Olympic Truce a membership requirement, and whether to suspend or terminate the membership of the Russian Paralympic Committee and Belarus Paralympic Committee.
Earlier this week, the International Olympic Committee asked all sports to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes and teams from international competitions, saying the decision was made ""in order to protect the integrity of global sports competitions and for the safety of all the participants".
The statement added: "Russian or Belarusian nationals, be it as individuals or teams, should be accepted only as neutral athletes or neutral teams. No national symbols, colours, flags or anthems should be displayed."
World Athletics excludes Russian, Belarusian athletes
On Tuesday, the World Athletics Council announced that athletes from Russia and Belarus will be excluded from all World Athletics Series events for the foreseeable future.
Those events include March's World Indoor Athletics Championships in Belgrade and then the World Athletics Championships in Oregon in July.
World Athletics president Sebastian Coe said: "The world is horrified by what Russia has done, aided and abetted by Belarus.
"Anyone who knows me will understand that imposing sanctions on athletes because of the actions of their government goes against the grain.
"I have railed against the practice of politicians targeting athletes and sport to make political points when other sectors continue about their business.
"This is different as governments, business and other international organisations have imposed sanctions and measures against Russia across all sectors.
"Sport has to step up and join these efforts to end this war and restore peace. We cannot and should not sit this one out."
A number of other sports federations, including world soccer governing body FIFA, have banned teams and athletes from Russia and Belarus.
