Russian athletes are vaccinated with “Sputnik”, which the WHO has not yet approved, and this is a reason not to admit them. And the competition qualifies for participation in the Beijing Olympics. Is there a political connotation in the situation?
Russian freestylers might not qualify for the Beijing Olympics. They were not allowed to fly for major qualifying events in the United States and Canada. About that RIA Novosti said the president of the Russian Freestyle Federation Alexei Kurashov.
The point is, the Sputnik vaccine is still not approved by the WHO. At the same time, earlier – in the same situation – the skaters Could obtain an exit permit.
In the United States and Canada, the stages of the Freestyle World Cup should be taken – these are moguls, ski cross, halfpipe, big air, slopestyle and other interesting disciplines. But Russian athletes may not ride them. Only people vaccinated with vaccines approved by WHO are allowed. And not a single Russian development is included in their number, although it has been talked about for the whole last year. In turn, vaccines approved abroad are also not imported into Russia.
Freestyle competitions are very important, and in fact they qualify for the Beijing Olympics, which starts in February. An impasse has arisen, sums up the sports columnist of Novaya Gazeta Vladimir Mozgovoy:
Vladimir Mozgovoy sports columnist for Novaya Gazeta
According to the President of the Russian Freestyle Federation Alexei Kurashov, the athletes had difficulty obtaining American visas, they are soon waiting for visas from Canada. But getting vaccinated with an approved vaccine is key. Without this, no permit will be issued. It is all the more surprising that in a similar story, the Russian speed skating team was still given the green light to fly to the United States to participate in the World Cup in Salt Lake City. . Although she also risked, says executive director of the Russian Skating Union Varvara Barysheva:
Varvara Barycheva Executive Director of the Russian Skating Union
It turns out that sometimes even the strict rules about approved vaccinations are bypassed if properly put. Or go where you need it. At first, doping scandals, moreover, are still vague, now here is a convenient excuse not to leave athletes vaccinated with the Russian vaccine, explains Alexei Kylasov, head of the center for traditional games and sports in Russian research Likhachev . Institute of Cultural and Natural Heritage:
Alexey Kylasov Head of the Center for Traditional Games and Sports of the Russian Research Institute on Cultural and Natural Heritage named after Likhachev
According to the president of the Russian Freestyle Skiing Federation, the question of admission is currently being discussed by the International Ski Federation and the IOC, but without much success. The organizers replied: “Get vaccinated with foreign vaccines, that’s it.” If our athletes don’t finish in Beijing, it will be a shame, the squad is strong. At the world championships this year our freestylers won eight medals. Three of them are gold.
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