The IOC recalled on Thursday the “concept of individual responsibility” to which it adheres. The statement was made in reference to the escalation of violence in the Middle East, and stressed that “athletes are not responsible for the actions of their governments,” the Sputnik agency reported.

“Once again, we see an example of the bias and incompetence of the IOC, which demonstrates its political bias time and again. It actively supports everything that responds to the interests of Western countries, especially the United States, and seeks to find expressions that support this line,” Lavrov said.

In the opinion of the Foreign Minister, the IOC discredited itself in this way.

Following the start of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine, the IOC recommended to international sports federations not to allow athletes from Russia and Belarus to participate in competitions due to hostilities in Ukraine.

However, last March, the Committee recommended that international federations only allow Russian and Belarusian athletes, who do not support the Russian operation or are not linked to the armed forces, to participate in sporting events but only as neutrals.

In addition, the IOC suspended the Russian Olympic Committee until further notice on October 12th due to the incorporation of the Olympic councils of the republics of Donbas and the provinces of Kherson and Zaporozhye into the Russian Committee.

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