Is Russian sporting federations joining Asia for 2024 Paris Olympic qualifiers?

Russia is currently banned from the Olympics, but its athletes can compete in the games under the banner of the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC). With the 2024 Paris Games approaching, qualifiers for several sports are already underway.

The IOC (International Olympic Committee) issued several sanctions against Russia after its invasion of Ukraine. Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials are not allowed in any international competitions in addition to several more sanctions.

If Russian athletes want to compete in Paris 2024, they need to qualify first. With the sanctions in place, it seems like a tough task.

So are the Russian Sporting Federations joining Asia for the 2024 Paris Games?

It is currently not finalized yet, but there is a strong possibility that it might materialize. This is due to a press release posted on the IOC's official website.

Silver medalists Team ROC pose after the Group All-Around Final at the Tokyo Games

The press release consisted of a proposal from the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA). The statement was as follows:

"The OCA offered to facilitate the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus in competitions in Asia under its authority, while respecting the sanctions in place."

This could be a huge step for Russian athletes looking to compete in the famous event. The next important point stated:

"The IOC to lead the further exploration of the OCA initiative concerning the participation of athletes who are in full respect of the Olympic Charter and the sanctions. This initiative to be discussed in the next round of IOC consultation calls with the IOC Members, the athletes’ representatives, the International Federations and the National Olympic Committees."

With the IOC looking into this idea, this would be a massive call as so far, European nations aren't on good terms with Russia. However, Asian countries such as India, China, and Iran have been allies of Russia.

IOC President Thomas Bach

Thomas Bach, the IOC president, thanked the OCA for its creative initiative, according to the official website of the Olympics. According to the Associated Press, World Athletics President Seb Coe said that Russia must “get out of Ukraine” before it is readmitted to track and field.

So everything depends on the final decision made by the IOC.

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All-Russia Swimming Federations head on Russian Sporting federations moving to Asia for Olympic Qualifiers

Vladimir Salnikov, the head of the All-Russia Swimming Federation, has spoken about the possibility of Russian sporting federations moving to Asia for Olympic qualifiers. He claimed that his relationship with LEN (the European governing body for aquatic sports affiliated with FINA) is more strained than his relationship with World Aquatics.

Vladimir Salnikov in 1988

According to Swimswam, Vladimir confirmed the conversations regarding the move in interviews with domestic state-owned media. He said,

"This, in principle, is real, but you need to be extremely careful in these decisions. In what status we could participate in the competitions of the Asian confederation is another question. It still needs to be clarified, especially since this matter concerns our entire aquatic family, and not just swimming.”

If the move gets approved, Russia will move to Asia and compete in the competition with the hope of being reinstated in time for the 2024 Paris Olympics.