President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Thomas Bach made a scandalous statement about the possible participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The head of the IOC noted that he is working to help athletes from the Russian Federation and Belarus return to international competitions. Bach cynically stated that the participation of Russians and Belarusians in the 2024 Olympics would supposedly contribute to " “Now we are making every effort to fulfill the mission, implement the proposals of the Olympic movement by returning athletes with Russian or Belarusian passports to international competitions.. We are working very closely and exchanging opinions with the IFs that are currently in charge of running their competitions.. We very much hope that this mission can be accomplished under the conditions that have been set for athletes from the two countries to compete in neutral status so that we can truly unite the whole world with the Olympic Games in Paris.. You know the statements of governments that want to decide who can participate in the Olympic Games, international sports competitions, and who can't.. We must be very tough so that these decisions are made by responsible sports organizations.. I think governments have the right to express their position. But they are also aware that any kind of boycott will only punish their own athletes and deprive their people of the opportunity to be proud of their athletes' performance at the Olympics," On March 28, the IOC recommended that international sports federations allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete in a neutral status with a number of restrictions. Russians and Belarusians are prohibited from participating in team sports, they must also not support the war and have contracts with the armies of the aggressor states. After that, the Government of Ukraine banned Ukrainian athletes from participating in competitions with the participation of athletes from aggressor countries, including qualifying starts for the 2024 Olympics.. In response, the IOC condemned the decision of the Cabinet of Ministers to ban Ukrainian athletes from competing with Russians and Belarusians.. Recall that Ukraine may boycott the 2024 Olympics if athletes from Russia and Belarus are allowed to compete.. In turn, Ukrainian sports stars Yaroslav Maguchy, Oleg Vernyaev and Mikhail Romanchuk spoke out against a possible boycott by our country of the Games in Paris. The Summer Olympic Games in Paris will be held from July 26 to August 11, 2024.