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Neutral Athlete Wins Group's First Gold
www.newser.com ^ | August 02, 2024 | Staff

Posted on 08/05/2024 7:19:51 AM PDT by Red Badger

Russia, Belarus competitors will not hear their national anthems at Games

The neutral collective of athletes won its first gold medal at the Paris Olympics on Friday. Ivan Litvinovich was not allowed to float down the River Seine on a boat during the Games' opening ceremony a week ago—just like all 32 athletes from Russia and Belarus whose Olympic team identity has been made almost invisible because of their nations' military invasion of Ukraine. When standing on the top step of the podium, Litvinovich was prohibited from hearing the Belarus anthem, the AP reports. Playing instead was a nondescript, wordless tune commissioned by the International Olympic Committee.

These are the Olympic rules of engagement for the 32 athletes who were vetted and approved—and accepted their invitations—to come to France and compete for the team that's not a team. Earlier Friday, when the first of them won a medal, it was not the international sports signifier BLR for Belarus next to Viyaleta Bardzilouskaya's name. Bardzilouskaya took silver in women's trampoline for AIN, the French acronym for Individual Neutral Athlete, whose collective medals are not tallied on the official team standings. Almost 2½ years after Russia invaded Ukraine with backing from neighboring Belarus, the two countries mostly feel like pariahs in world sports.

The IOC moved within days of the invasion to urge Olympic sports bodies to pull upcoming events from Russia and Belarus and remove their teams and athletes, for reasons of security and integrity of competitions. Last year, the IOC settled on its Paris Olympics policy: No Russian or Belarusian teams, which by definition represent a nation, would be allowed, but selected athletes would be invited. They must have passed vetting first by their sport's governing body, then the IOC, to have not supported the war nor had funding or links to military or state security agencies. Russia has 15 athletes in the Games, Belarus 17, per the AP. They're allowed no flag, no anthem, no team uniforms in national flag colors, basically, stripping them of national identity. (More 2024 Paris Olympics stories.)


TOPICS: History; Military/Veterans; Society; Sports
KEYWORDS: olympics; parisolympics; ukraine

1 posted on 08/05/2024 7:19:51 AM PDT by Red Badger
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To: Red Badger

Congratulations to the neutrals. And unlasting shame to Russia and Belarus, countries that systematically break rules on and off the playing field. These are the clown countries that decided to try to cheat at the Olympics for years.


2 posted on 08/05/2024 7:22:18 AM PDT by Alter Kaker (Gravitation is a theory, not a fact. It should be approached with an open mind...)
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To: Alter Kaker

There are many more countries than Russia and Belarus that cheat at the Olympics. It is an epidemic.


3 posted on 08/05/2024 7:28:59 AM PDT by frogjerk (More people have died trusting the government than not trusting the government.)
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To: Alter Kaker

Being categorized as a ‘neutral’ has nothing to do with ‘Russia and Belaurus breaking the rules and cheating for years’....


4 posted on 08/05/2024 7:29:30 AM PDT by hecticskeptic
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To: Red Badger

What was the gold medal in?


5 posted on 08/05/2024 7:29:47 AM PDT by HartleyMBaldwin
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To: HartleyMBaldwin

Trampoline......................🙄


6 posted on 08/05/2024 7:34:38 AM PDT by Red Badger (Homeless veterans camp in the streets while illegals are put up in 5 Star hotels....................)
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To: HartleyMBaldwin
What was the gold medal in?

Trampoline
7 posted on 08/05/2024 7:34:44 AM PDT by BigEdLB ( they wont try bcause it wont matter.)
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To: Red Badger; BigEdLB

Thanks.


8 posted on 08/05/2024 7:41:18 AM PDT by HartleyMBaldwin
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To: Red Badger

IOC says that Russia is too evil to be in the olympics, but Iran is good.


9 posted on 08/05/2024 7:44:03 AM PDT by Tell It Right (1 Thessalonians 5:21 -- Put everything to the test, hold fast to that which is true.)
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To: Red Badger

that’s almost as dumb as peanut brain Carter boycotting olympics....


10 posted on 08/05/2024 7:58:38 AM PDT by CarolinaReaganFan
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To: Alter Kaker

Wait...you are not talking about the US...?


11 posted on 08/05/2024 8:13:45 AM PDT by Leep (She cackles in you general direction.)
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To: Tell It Right

Well,Iran probably won’t nuke France if they lose..?


12 posted on 08/05/2024 8:15:48 AM PDT by Leep (She cackles in you general direction.)
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To: Red Badger
Are they not allowed to be in the Olympics because they have waged war on their neighbor or been involved in hostile acts which include, but not limited to, interference in another countries affairs or government, bombing another countries infrastructure or killing another countries citizens, using the international banking system to manipulate or control another countries money and their power to use their money?

Then why the HECK is the United States allowed to be in the Olympics?
13 posted on 08/05/2024 8:55:35 AM PDT by The Louiswu (Pray for Peace in the world.)
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To: Tell It Right

And Palestine, Lebanon, and North Korea.


14 posted on 08/05/2024 9:45:44 AM PDT by packrat35 (Pureblood! No clot shot for me!)
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To: Red Badger
Ivan Litvinovich was not allowed to float down the River Seine on a boat during the Games' opening ceremony...

Good for him. Health reasons.


15 posted on 08/05/2024 5:46:32 PM PDT by Libloather (Why do climate change hoax deniers live in mansions on the beach?)
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To: Red Badger

“Bardzilouskaya took silver in women’s trampoline...”

I remember hearing they were going to make Pole Dancing an Olympic Sport, did they actually do it?


16 posted on 08/05/2024 6:21:28 PM PDT by PLMerite ("They say that we were Cold Warriors. Yes, and a bloody good show, too." - Robert Conquest )
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To: Red Badger

Article:

“have not supported the war nor had funding or links to military or state security agencies.”

This is political correctness out of control.

Should US athletes be banned because the Democrats stole the election of 2020?


17 posted on 08/05/2024 6:28:31 PM PDT by cgbg ("Our democracy" = Their Kleptocracy)
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