“I’m simply speechless. They want to destroy us, but they won’t succeed. Why is this happening? Will anyone ever defend us? The truth is on our side. This is terrible news.” Tarasova criticized the IOC’s decision to maintain sanctions against Russian athletes

Tatiana Tarasova criticized the IOC’s decision to maintain sanctions against Russian athletes, calling it unfair and urging for urgent support for Russian sport.

original source: RIA Novosti / Sport24 / Sport24

Tatiana Tarasova responded to the IOC’s decision not to lift sanctions on Russian athletes. Here’s a translation of her comments.

On Thursday, the IOC Executive Board announced that it no longer recommends any restrictions on the participation of Belarusians in international competitions, but maintained sanctions against Russians. Additionally, the IOC expressed concern over the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) investigation into the leadership of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) and promised to look into the situation. The IOC also explained that the situation with the Russian Olympic Committee differs from that of the National Olympic Committee of Belarus, as the latter has proper status and complies with the Olympic Charter.

“I am simply speechless. They want to destroy us, but they won’t succeed. We are strong, our students are strong, and our team is strong. How can they break their own word like this? They talked about four years – how can this be?

Will anyone ever defend us? The truth is on our side. This is terrible news. They got everything they could from WADA, and our people were working on something. Why is this happening? Who can we turn to? What is going on? Did we poop in someone’s borscht to deserve this?

We haven’t broken any rules; the truth is on our side. You can’t trust them – not a single word. They break all their promises. I believe that people who understand this issue should defend us,” Tarasova said.

“We have been waiting for four years. We wait, we improve ourselves. And for what? The IOC is violating its own principles. Is this fair? I don’t understand how this can even happen. For four years, they have been destroying us, destroying the profession that helped so many Europeans, Americans, and Japanese become European, World, and Olympic champions. They are destroying the profession in our country. Who will defend us? We need protection,” Tarasova told TASS.

“The injustice is that we were supposed to start competing again next year. That was their decision – a four-year disqualification. The IOC is breaking its own rules and changing its mind. It turns out they are scoundrels.

Who will stand up for us? It can’t be that there’s no one to do it. It’s clear that there is bias against Russia. Our sport needs urgent help! And this must be resolved at the highest level,” Tarasova said in a conversation with Sport24 correspondent Andrey Babich.

Related topics: IOC, Tatiana Tarasova