The senior official added that it would also be unfair not to count their victories in the table of medals of the Olympic Games, all of which destroys the idea of the Olympics, constituting an infringement of the athletes’ interests.

Peskov added that the decision is absolutely contrary to the whole ideology of the Olympic movement, and will not benefit the IOC at all.

Earlier, the head of the IOC department in charge of relations with national Olympic Committees, James McLeod, stated that the Committee had banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating in the opening parade of the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.

The representative of the Olympic organization noted that a decision on the participation of athletes in the closing ceremony of the games will be made later.

On December 8, 2023, the IOC allowed Russian athletes to participate in the Paris Olympics as neutrals.

The organization noted that Russian and Belarusian athletes have been banned from taking part in all team events, and athletes who actively support hostilities in Ukraine or are associated with the army or national security organizations will not be allowed to participate.

In addition, officials will not be accredited at the event and the display of the official symbols of Russia and Belarus will be prohibited. The Paris Olympics will be held from July 26 to August 11.

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