'Double standards': Russia's angry swipe over Paralympics ban

Russia’s Paralympic team have decided not to appeal an extraordinary ban on its athletes competing at the Winter Games in Beijing, despite hitting out in disgust at the controversial move.

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) performed a stunning U-turn on Thursday when it opted to exclude Russian and Belarusian athletes from the Games.

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With Russian athletes and teams increasingly banned from competing in sporting events around the world, Paralympics chiefs initially bucked the trend by saying athletes from Russia and Belarus would be allowed to compete under a neutral flag.

But only 24 hours later - with many of the athletes having already arrived - the IPC backed down on their initial decision by announcing a stunning ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes.

It cited threats from National Paralympic Committees, teams and athletes not to compete, saying such a boycott would jeopardise the Games' viability.

Russia’s Paralympic team have returned home from Beijing after deciding not to appeal against the decision to ban their athletes from competing.

The Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) said it had considered lodging an appeal for an accelerated Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) hearing but discovered that IPC statutes prevented it.

The RPC said it reserved the right to apply to the appropriate international and national courts “when the RPC considers it timely and necessary” but that the delegation would now be leaving China.

Russia slams Paralympics backflip

“The decision (to exclude Russian Paralympians) is absolutely politicised… and clearly tells everyone double standards, unfortunately, have become the norm for modern sports," the RPC said in a statement.

“The current situation also makes it clear to everyone: strong rivals, which the Russian team has always been and will be, are not needed today.

“After receiving the decision of the IPC on the non-admission of the team to the Games, the RPC involved leading Russian and foreign law firms to conduct a legal examination of the possibility of the RPC applying to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and obtaining a positive decision during the accelerated proceedings.

“Unfortunately, this is prevented by article 2.9 of the Paralympic Games Section of the IPC Rules, according to which the IPC ‘may, at its discretion, at any time, refuse any athlete entry, without indication of grounds’, as well as the absence in the IPC Constitution of an arbitration clause allowing the RPC to apply to CAS to resolve disputes.

“The Russian Paralympic Committee and its athletes currently do not consider it possible or expedient to stay in Beijing and are planning to leave the capital of the Winter Games, the city of wonderful people, in the near future.”

Russia increasingly being banned from world sport

The Paralympics move is the latest in a growing number of bans and boycotts of Russian teams and athletes around the world.

Arguably the most damaging from a sporting perspective is the decision by FIFA and UEFA to ban Russian teams from competing in competitions around the world, meaning they've effectively been excluded from this year's World Cup in Qatar.

The Russian Football Union (RFU) said it had lodged an appeal to CAS against the decision by FIFA and UEFA to ban its national teams and clubs from international football until further notice.

The football authorities’ decision to ban Russia followed a recommendation from the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) executive board that Russian and Belarusian athletes, teams and officials should be excluded from events “wherever possible”.

The RPC said that the IOC's decision had “led to the degradation and collapse of the entire world of sports”.

with agencies

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