Russian Sports Ministry to Support All Athletes Regardless 2018 Olympics Status

© AFP 2023 / Fabrice COFFRINI A supporter waves a Russian flag in front of the logo of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) at their headquarters on December 5, 2017 in Pully near Lausanne
A supporter waves a Russian flag in front of the logo of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) at their headquarters on December 5, 2017 in Pully near Lausanne - Sputnik International
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Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week that those athletes who want to participate in the upcoming winter Olympic Games in South Korea under the neutral flag should do so.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russian Sports Minister Pavel Kolobkov has announced that Moscow would provide legal, financial and moral support to athletes who would participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, as well as to those who cannot go.

The Kremlin has also approved the decision of the Russian Olympic Assembly to support the participation of Russian athletes under the Olympic flag.

"President Putin said last week if you remember, he said that nobody should create any obstacles for those athletes who want to go under the neutral flag, he said that based on this stance he was awaiting the Olympic Assembly where a corresponding decision would be made," Peskov said.

While speaking about the number of athletes eligible for the participation in the Olympics, Head of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) Alexander Zhukov, that more than 200 Russian athletes potentially had licenses to participate in the competition, but the International Olympic Committee (IOC) would determine the specific composition.

READ MORE: IOC Not Considering Putin as Personally Involved in Doping Scandal — Rep.

On December 5, the International Olympic Committee allowed clean Russian athletes to perform at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang under the Olympic flag. Following the decision, the commission of athletes of the Russian Olympic Committee announced Monday that it would support those Russian athletes who expressed their readiness to take part in the Olympics. 

The same day, the Russian Olympic Committee's (ROC) Athletes Commission drafted an appeal to the IOC President Thomas Bach with a request to review the decision on the Russian national team's participation in the 2018 Olympic Games without the national anthem and flag.

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