Sergey Shishkarev: "I hope the return process of will get off the ground"
The Chairman of the Supreme Council of the Handball Federation of Russia Sergey Shishkarev stated that the organization received a letter from the International Handball Federation about the negotiations with the International Olympic Committee about the admission of the Russian and Belarusian teams to competitions and also pointed out that the national teams are ready to return to the international arena at any moment.
— I can approve that the HFR received a letter from the International Handball Federation signed by Hassan Moustafa informing that the IHF discusses with the IOC the issues of return of the Russian and Belarusian national teams and clubs to the international arena.
For our part, we’ve been conducting a constructive dialogue with the IHF and the IOC for more than three years about the possibility for our athletes of taking part in competitions at any level. We suppose that sport should remain outside the politics and carry a unifying beginning in itself, as it was declared long ago. One of the Olympic principles lies in the fact that every individual shall have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind.
For example, the women’s handball national team of Russia won gold and silver medals at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo, which is a phenomenal result. And we’ve all seen how much did the last year’s Olympics in Paris lose in her absence. A very ambitious men’s national team has been assembled. We have significanty rejuvenated the line-upduring this time and, of course, we are ready to come back to the international arena at any time. We have a very talented generation of handball players, who, unfortunately, are not able to play with the best national teams and clubs for reasons beyond their control. I hope the process will get off the ground and we will hear the good news concerning this issue in the near future, — rsport.ria.ru quotes Sergey Shishkarev.
Photo: the HFR press
