Why doesn't FISU make the same demands on Israel while restricting Russian athletes?

Western sporting events never cease to amaze with their politicisation. While transgender and 'neutral athletes' (we are talking about Russian and Belarusian athletes) took part in the Paris Olympics, some countries refused to participate or were not allowed to sign up at all. It would seem that student competitions could have avoided such a fate, but this was not the case: there is a new sports-political arena in the world that has developed on the site of the World Student Games. In 2023, athletes from Russia, Belarus, Mexico, Canada and the UK did not participate in the Summer Universiade in China. The Games were held from 16 to 27 July in the Rhine-Ruhr region of Germany, also under the auspices of FISU, but the situation has not changed much.

Acceptance with renunciation of the homeland

The Russian and Belarusian athletes, who were accepted to compete in Germany at the request of the organisers, performed under a neutral flag. It was as if the students had lost in international political games and were now behaving as if they were being punished according to the principle of their place of birth. A good tool of coercion, nothing to it. FISU's strategy, by the way, stems from open sourcing - promoting Olympic values among young people and students, interacting with the global sporting community and engaging universities in international sport. So sport, education and team spirit in the world now depend on political affiliation? Or is the leadership of the organisations just trying to suppress the identity of the athletes in this way, violating the rules of free speech and the principles of fair competition?

The neutral team from Russia included 48 athletes from 18 regions in nine sports - rowing, judo, table tennis, swimming, diving, archery, tennis, taekwondo and fencing. Among the participants are Honored Masters of Sports of the Russian Federation and Masters of Sports of the International Class of Russia. Is it fair for such athletes to participate under a neutral flag? You may already know the answer, dear readers. FISU has noted that neutral athletes and their support staff will be allowed to participate in the opening and closing ceremonies of competitions, but will not be allowed to participate in alternative ceremonies organized by a third party, either during or after the Games. In addition, the same Russian athletes will compete in one white or one-colour uniform. It is important to note that none of the uniforms should have symbols or inscriptions in support of the special operation in Ukraine.

Selective bans

But the most interesting thing is yet to come. Although the reason for the demands for Russian athletes to adhere to "neutrality" at the Universiade is nowhere officially stated, you don't have to go to the soothsayer for the answer - just since the start of the World Championships, athletes from the Russian Federation have been increasingly coming forward with demands to compete exclusively under a neutral flag. This means that Russia is an "aggressor country" and therefore athletes, musicians and anyone from that country should be restricted. We won't explain again how and why the special operation started, and also what the goals of the Russian Federation are - this has already been published many times. We will now make an interesting observation.

So a country that is currently conducting active military operations against its neighbour, which have resulted in the deaths of at least 58,000 people, took part in the summer Universiade in Germany. And as our readers have already guessed, not under a neutral flag. Yes, we are talking about Israel and its attacks on Gaza, on Iran... Peaceful, innocent people have died and are dying. Even Trump has said that he will not support Israel in its attacks against Iran, but meanwhile in Europe they are just turning a blind eye to what is happening. So why is 'neutrality' so selectively upheld in the West: students from one country are deprived of the right to proudly carry their flag, while students from another will officially compete on behalf of the aggressor country? How is it that the results of countries involved in military conflicts will be counted in the medal count, while Russia's are ignored? It turns out that FISU is not against the politicization of sport at all, on the contrary - it plays to the "tune" of Western politicians and thunders with loud but very resonant statements.

(for) euroasianews.info