— Less than 10 days remain before the official opening of the Olympic Games so we are nearly at the finish line. An advanced group of specialists from our delegation has already arrived in Beijing and has begun working there. We are looking forward to settling in the Olympic villages and we are waiting for the first group of our Olympians. They fly out today, — said Stanislav Pozdnyakov. — As for freestyle, it is one of the most medal-intensive sports in the program of the Winter Olympic Games. The results shown by our athletes in this sport recently made all our fans pay particular attention. The sport is interesting and at the same time dangerous and reckless in its own way. And extremely diverse in terms of disciplines within the sports program. I think that freestyle has a great future, also because it is perceived as part of the youth subculture and is very popular among the younger generation.
We are long-term partners with the Russian Freestyle Federation, and we went through the difficult Games in Pyeongchang together. Of course, today we can say that the conditions under which we will perform in Beijing are much more comfortable for our athletes. Let me remind you that athletes are a priority for any sports federation and the Russian Olympic Committee. I am sure that the conditions that we will create for them will contribute to great sports results.
— The issue of distributing Olympic quotas in freestyle has not been finally resolved since our athletes have not competed in qualifying competitions in North America. At what stage is it now and what actions are being taken?
— Due to the fact that the Sputnik vaccine is not recognized in the United States and Canada, Russian athletes could not take part in the qualifying competitions for the Olympic Games. Meanwhile, we can see that the Beijing 2022 Organizing Committee has taken a different position. It has recognized all vaccines registered in the countries from which athletes are arriving. The same approach is followed by most of the countries holding competitions, including the Russian Federation.
Of course, we believe that the rights of our athletes were violated for reasons beyond their control. In connection with this, there was a need for dialogue with the International Federation, to which we immediately invited colleagues from the IOC sports department.
We focused on the fact that back in 2020, after the postponement of the Tokyo Olympics, the International Olympic Committee, together with the National Olympic Committees and International Federations, came to a consensus. According to the consensus, there is Plan A, when all qualifying competitions are held and all athletes can take part in them. If for some reason it is not possible to hold qualifying starts, then a different approach will be applied — the ranking of athletes will be registered at the time of the cancellation.
In the spirit of this decision, it is logical that if athletes from the Russian Federation are unable to compete for reasons beyond their control, while the organizers are obliged to ensure equal access for all participants, then their rights shall be deemed to be violated. We have repeatedly asked our colleagues to propose options in which our athletes would not be subjected to such discrimination. Incidentally, I raised this topic at the Olympic Summit on December 12 — we communicated at the highest level. Recently, I wrote a letter to the head of the IOC, Thomas Bach, in which I once again drew attention to the commitment of our country to the same approach for all athletes, regardless of their nationality, and I touched on the issue of recognition or non-recognition of vaccines.
In this situation, from the very beginning we provided advisory assistance to the Russian Freestyle Federation. Lawyers are giving consultations and we are going to resolve this situation because we can see that we are absolutely right and we can fight for our athletes. It’s only a matter of time. And if we do not receive a satisfactory answer from the International Ski Federation (FIS), then the mechanisms of the International Sports Arbitration will be activated.
— Will there be enough time if the case is considered by CAS?
— There is a special procedure. The CAS division is already in Beijing — this is a common practice. This group should conduct all hearings in a very short time and make the relevant decision. That is where we intend to turn to.
— The latest news about positive PCR tests among athletes, including Russian ones, makes us say that the Beijing Games could turn into an omicron lottery. Are you not afraid that the distribution of places will depend on the results of coronavirus tests?
— In any case, the Olympic Games will be a great sporting event. Another thing is that, unfortunately, not everyone will be there. Undoubtedly, today this is the biggest challenge — overcoming the barriers of the final stage, protecting yourself from infection and taking part in the Olympic Games.
We receive information about this every day. The Omicron strain is generally less aggressive, and all of our athletes are vaccinated. This should offer some advantages over previous strains in terms of shorter recovery and recuperation. Accordingly, there are more opportunities to take part in the Games.
The most important thing is that such cases remain isolated. All athletes, managers, coaches, and staff should take all possible measures to localize individual cases. This is our vital task.
