The head coach of the men’s handball team of Belarus Yury Shevtsov shared his opinion concerning the IOC suspension of athletes from Russia and Belarus.
— The Olympic Games in Moscow, in which I didn’t participate, passed before my eyes, then the Games were held in Los-Angeles, which were boycotted, as an a retaliatory measure. Many situations occurred, when politics interfered with sports. Now I read announcements about bans, but I wonder: what about sport? The mission of sport is to unite. But, unfortunately, athletes don’t decide anything. And these statements appear, depending upon convenience for someone.
What would I tell Thomas Bach? I would say, that we are not to be blamed, it’s not about sport. The athlete's life passes, I could have been two-time Olympic champion, but, unfortunately, I wasn’t allowed even to go and participate. Other officials of the IOC and international federations will tell present guys many years later, that it was wrong. I read an interview of a German coach, who said, it was a mistake to boycott the Moscow Olympic Games, but he said it 20 years later. Unfortunately, nothing depends on us in the current situation, — TASS quotes Shevtsov’s words.
Photo: Alena Pastushenko / Handballfast
