For the first time since the Cold War, Russia has decided not to broadcast the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, citing political reasons.
The 2024 Summer Olympics is scheduled from July 26 to August 11 in Paris, France.
Political Decision
Russia will not broadcast this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris, a decision not made since the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics. Russian news outlet Sports.ru reported this on Saturday, attributing the move to political reasons.
Sports.ru quoted an anonymous source stating that it was “impossible to show the Olympics without the [Russian] flag and anthem” under the current political climate.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) banned Russia from competition on February 24, 2022, following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
This ban came while Russia was already serving a two-year suspension from all international sporting competitions due to a massive state-sponsored doping program revealed in 2019.
Only 15 Russian athletes will participate under a neutral flag.
Historical Context
The last time Russia chose not to broadcast the Olympic Games was in 1984, when the USSR boycotted the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
The boycott was in response to what it called “anti-Soviet hysteria” in the United States, which was actually retaliation for a US-led boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics over the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
Nobel Laureates Call for Ceasefire
On Saturday, 51 Nobel laureates, including former Novaya Gazeta editor-in-chief Dmitry Muratov and Belarusian author Svetlana Alexievich, penned an open letter to religious leaders and various international bodies.
They called for a ceasefire in the 55 armed conflicts worldwide during the Summer Olympics.
The letter, addressed to figures such as Pope Francis and the 14th Dalai Lama, lamented the waste of resources on war and warned that the war in Ukraine could claim over 1 million lives by the end of the year.
“We are not state representatives, but if the efforts of states to establish peace are insufficient, we must take action,” the laureates wrote, urging for peace during the games.
