Culture secretary to tell IOC to think again over Russians at Paris 2024

Plans to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes without direct military links to compete at the Paris Olympics are open to abuse and deeply concerning, the culture secretary will warn on Tuesday.

In a speech to the Council of Europe, Lucy Frazer will also warn the International Olympic Committee that the links between state, military and sport in both countries are “root and branch”.

And in a sign of ongoing hostility between the IOC and 35 western countries, which want athletes from Russia and Belarus to remain banned, she will tell the IOC it must go “back to the drawing board” over its controversial proposals to allow such athletes to compete as “neutrals”, without their usual kits, flags or anthems.

“More than 220 Ukrainian athletes and coaches have so far lost their lives at the hands of Russian aggression,” Frazer will say. “Countless more have been forced to flee or defend their homeland from invading forces.

“None of us should countenance the idea of a Ukrainian athlete being forced to share a pitch, a court, a field, a starting line with state-sponsored athletes from Russia and Belarus.”

Frazer will claim that the IOC’s plans are flawed in three areas. First, they ignore the fact the athletes from Russia and Belarus are state-funded; second, that many such athletes are affiliated with the military; and third, they contain loopholes that could be exploited.

“There is no reference anywhere in the recommendations to state funding, which is a breach of neutrality,” Frazer will say. “State funding is state representation.

“Secondly, the provisions set out on military and national security agency links are currently minimal, especially when we know that the links between state, military and sport in Russia and Belarus are root and branch.

“And if you think that sounds like an exaggeration, consider the fact that the two leading Russia sports societies – the Central Sports Club of the Army and the Dynamo Sports Society – were founded by the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Internal Affairs respectively. Many Russian athletes have been active in their support for Putin’s invasion.”

Frazier will also warn that the government has “ongoing serious concerns about how these provisions will be implemented effectively, robustly and consistently”.

The government’s response comes after the IOC said last month that it would consider allowing some Russians and Belarusians to compete. Its president, Thomas Bach, also cited work by two UN special rapporteurs, Alexandra Xanthaki and Ashwini KP, who have said it would unfairly discriminate against individual Russians, to make his case.