The International Olympic Committee will triple its direct financial aid to Ukrainian athletes ahead of the 2024 Paris Games and then the 2026 Winter Games, IOC President Thomas Bach announced on Sunday.
On a visit to Kiev, Bach, who spoke alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, also indicated that “the time has not come” to change the position of the IOC, which has recommended excluding Russian and Belarusian athletes from all international sporting events.
“We support them (Ukrainian athletes) so that we can see them at the Paris 2024 Olympics and the 2026 Winter Olympics in Cortina-Milan (…), may the Ukrainian flag be flown high”, declared the official.
“To that end, the IOC will triple the fund we established at the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine (on 24 February) from $2.5 million to $7.5 million,” he said.
President Zelensky welcomed this additional support.
“The Russian invasion has dealt a cruel blow to Ukrainian sport,” the president said after his meeting with Bach.
“Many Ukrainian athletes have joined the military to defend our country, to defend it on the battlefield.”
“89 athletes and coaches died as a result of military combat. Thirteen were captured by the Russians and remain in captivity,” he added.
Bach said Ukrainian Sergueï Bubka, a former pole vaulter and president of the Ukrainian Olympic Committee, is continuing his coordination efforts to raise more funds.
“We also assure the president (Zelensky) that we stand by the position we took at the beginning of the war, which is very clear (…), and includes our recommendations to international (sports) federations not to invite Russian and Belarusian athletes to international competitions,” he said. he. “The time has not come to suspend these recommendations.”
