The head of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, spoke about a very interesting conversation with Emmanuel Macron, which took place at the G20 summit in Indonesia. According to Bach, the French President intends to see Russian athletes at the Games in Paris in 2024. How is this even possible and why such changes?

Bach again “pleased” with hypocrisy

At the beginning of this week, the executive committee of the International Olympic Committee was held in Lausanne, where, of course, the issue of the status of Russian and Belarusian athletes was raised. President Thomas Bach once again showed miracles of hypocrisy, first saying that the suspension of the two countries remained in effect, and then noting that athletes should not be held accountable for the actions of their governments.

– Sanctions against Russian and Belarusian sports should remain in force. I have received the full support of the IOC Executive Board for the statements that I have already made on several occasions. That being said, I would like to say that the issue of athlete participation cannot be part of the sanctions, because the position of the Olympic Movement remains unchanged – athletes cannot be punished for the actions of their governments, unless they directly contribute to or support them. Suspension has always been a defensive measure, not part of the sanctions. This was done to ensure the safety of the athletes of these two countries, Bach said.

Such metamorphosis with the President of the IOC is not the first time this year. Thomas regularly makes controversial statements. He is clearly trying to sit on two chairs. It seems to be necessary to remove Russia and Belarus against the backdrop of political pressure. On the other hand, he perfectly understands the absurdity of these sanctions, which he also constantly talks about. And the fact that he used to spend a lot of time in Russia, was friends with the leadership of our country, cannot go unnoticed.

Thomas Bach / Photo: © Cao Can / XinHua / Global Look Press

But the end result is cognitive dissonance. President of the Russian Ski Racing Federation Elena Vyalbe, after one of Bach’s statements, even believed that the head of the IOC had finally seen the light. Well, he really sometimes gives out surprisingly adequate things. And now, at the IOC Executive Committee in Lausanne, he welcomed the decision of the NHL and the US Open to allow Russian hockey and tennis players, respectively, to participate in the competition. Moreover, Thomas condemned the leadership of Wimbledon, which went against the tennis association and denied our guys the opportunity to take part in the tournament.

What does Macron’s statement mean?

However, Bach saved the most important statement for last. He spoke about his conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron, whose words could change a lot in the approach to the admission of Russian athletes to the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

President Macron, in a private conversation with me, said that sport should not have been politicized. He emphasized in relation to the 2024 Olympics and Paralympics that representatives of all countries, including those in conflict, should participate in them, Bach said at a press conference at a meeting of the IOC Executive Board.

And now this is serious. Bach could hardly have given out the details of his conversation with Macron to the public space if this had not been agreed in advance. It seems that the President of France has transparently hinted that he wants to see Russia at the tournament in Paris.

Perhaps this is the first such statement of the head of one of the leading Western states. It is not yet clear what motivates it and what consequences it will have. At this stage, this does not give the Russians any guarantees, but the very appearance of such rhetoric already at least sets the stage for the fact that the removal of Russia will not be eternal – it seems that someone in the West still has a conscience, and it is doing its job. Perhaps everything will return to normal even faster than we think.