Great Britain considers protests over decision to let Russian athletes compete in Winter Paralympics

Great Britain are considering protests at the Winter Paralympics after reacting with fury at the decision to allow Russian athletes to compete in Beijing as ‘neutrals’.

The Government warned they would consider the ‘full range of options’ with the British Paralympic Association ahead of the Games which open on Friday after the International Paralympic Committee were slammed for ‘choosing bloodshed and profits over principles’.

While a full British boycott has not been ruled out, it is understood to be unlikely. However, some individual athletes could refuse to take part against Russians or choose to protest against the war of Ukraine in other ways.

‘I am extremely disappointed in the IPC – this is the wrong decision and I call on them to urgently reconsider,’ said culture secretary Nadine Dorries.

‘They must join the rest of the world in condemning this barbaric invasion by banning Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing. 

‘We will consider the full range of options in protest of this decision, in consultation with UK Sport and the British Paralympic Association. I will also be meeting with my international counterparts this week to discuss how we can respond collectively.’

ParalympicsGB, whose wheelchair curling team face Russian opposition on Sunday, added: ‘We are disappointed by the IPC’s decision. We already stated that given the magnitude of the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine, we cannot see how the participation of Russia or Belarus in the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games is compatible with the objectives of the Paralympic movement.

‘We’ll be consulting further and reflecting on the implications for ParalympicsGB before making further comment.’

Athletes from Russia and Belarus will now compete under the Paralympic flag and will not be included in the medal table. But, following an emergency board meeting in Beijing on Wednesday, the IPC refused calls to ban them completely because their rules did not cover breaches of the Olympic Truce and they feared legal challenges.

IPC president Andrew Parsons said: ‘What we have decided upon is the harshest possible punishment we can hand down within our constitution and the current IPC rules.

‘Now that this decision has been made, I expect all participating nations to treat the neutral athletes as they would any other athletes at these Games, no matter how difficult this may be.’

The IPC have also refused to relax rules banning athletes from protesting on the field of play, on the podium and in medal ceremonies. Their tone-deaf decision has prompted fears of widespread athlete boycotts during the Games.

IPC president Andrew Parsons said: ‘What we have decided upon is the harshest possible punishment we can hand down within our constitution’

Ali Jaward said that if he was an athlete going to the Games then he would refuse to compete

‘If I was an athlete going to the Winter Games I would refuse to compete,’ said Britain’s four-time Paralympic powerlifter Ali Jawad. ‘Competing in sport is not bigger than human life. Because of the decision the IPC made I think there will be a lot of boycotts.’

There are 71 competitors from Russia in Beijing and 12 from Belarus, while Ukraine have a team of 20. In a statement following the IPC’s announcement on Wednesday, Ukrainian athletes said: ‘As Russian and Belarusian bombs rain down on Ukrainian citizens, the IPC issued another blow to every Ukrainian athlete and citizen.

‘Yesterday, 19-year-old Ukrainian biathlete Yevhen Malyshev was killed in combat in Ukraine, defending his country against Russia’s attack. How many more lives need to be lost before sport implements meaningful sanctions?

‘The demands of athletes have been cast aside in favour of Russian interests. Sport administrators are choosing bloodshed and profits over principle and stakeholders.’