The International Olympic Committee has finally decided to fight political interference in sports and stood up for athletes who were denied visas on the eve of the World Cup. Now Indonesia can forget about big sports tournaments for a long time.

Russia can only dream of such an attitude from the IOC. How tired of these double standards!

Punishment of Indonesia

The Artistic Gymnastics World Championships are taking place in Indonesia from October 19 to 25. Russian athletes take part in it in a neutral status, but Israeli athletes are not allowed to participate in the competition at all. The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), as well as the International Olympic Committee (IOC), have nothing to do with this – the Indonesian government refused entry visas to the Israelis.

After such blatant interference of politics in sports, the IOC Executive Committee stood up for Israeli athletes and recommended that international federations not hold tournaments in Indonesia.

“To avoid similar situations in the future, the IOC Executive Board has decided to cease any form of dialogue with the Indonesian NOC regarding the holding of future Olympic Games, Youth Olympic Games, Olympic events or conferences until the Indonesian government provides sufficient assurance to the IOC that it will ensure entry into the country for all participants, regardless of nationality.

Recommend that all international federations not hold any international sporting events or meetings in Indonesia until the Indonesian government provides sufficient assurance to international federations that it will allow all participants, regardless of nationality, to enter the country, the press release said.

Daniel Marinov / Photo: © Yong Teck Lim / Staff / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

Russians are not welcome

If we abstract from the previous actions of the IOC, such intercession for athletes can only be welcomed. Who, if not the IOC, should fight for equal opportunities for all athletes, regardless of nationality? But for some reason the organization is not at all worried about discrimination against Russians.

In July 2023, Polish border guards did not allow tennis player Vera Zvonareva into the country to participate in the WTA tournament. During the same period, Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova was not allowed to play at a tournament in Prague: the Russian woman was detained at the airport and deported. In February 2024, the Romanian customs service did not allow two-time Olympic champion Abdulrashid Sadulayev to attend the European wrestling championship. In March 2025, the Czech Republic refused entry to Russian canoeists and kayakers to participate in the European Championships.

In the countries of northern Europe, even the hypothetical possibility of Russians speaking out is opposed, regardless of the positions of the IOC and international federations.

“Russians have nothing to do in Ruka, since they are prohibited from entering the country,” the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper quoted Sirpa Corkatti, president of the Finnish Ski Association, in the context of the hypothetical appearance of Russians at the World Cup in Finland.

Biathlon World Cup / Photo: © Kevin Voigt / Contributor / Getty Images Sport / Gettyimages.ru

— Russia is undesirable as a participating country. My message to Russian athletes is this: you are not welcome in Trondheim during the World Cup,” VG quoted the mayor of Trondheim, Kent Ranum, as saying.

No credit to the IOC

There were indeed examples when Russophobes were punished. For refusing to allow Russians to participate in the European Championships in Poland in 2023, the International Fencing Federation (FIE) stripped the tournament of its European Championship status. This year, for refusing entry to Russians and Belarusians, the World Kickboxing Federation (WKF) left Moldova without the European Championship. Important precedents, but this is definitely not the merit of the IOC.

By the way, discrimination based on nationality applies not only to Russians. In the summer, volleyball players from the Cuban national team were not allowed into the United States for a tournament for teams from North, Central America and the Caribbean (NORCECA). The athletes were simply denied visas. And how did they react to this in Lausanne? It seems like they didn’t notice the problem at all.

If the IOC truly decides to combat the influence of politics in sport, then the organization should forget about its beloved double standards. Attempts by officials to explain why athletes from some countries can be discriminated against, but not from others, are banal demagoguery. Having punished Indonesia, it is worth punishing a good half of European countries, whose politicians talk about the undesirability of Russians, and the responsible departments deny visas to our athletes.