In October, the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (Fis) decided to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from international competition and thus the Olympics, an extension of the suspension that has been in place since Russia's invasion war in Ukraine began in 2022.
The decision was appealed to Cas – which has now announced that Russian and Belarusian skiers will be allowed to compete in the World Cup as neutral athletes. This will give the athletes the opportunity to qualify for the Olympics in Italy in February.
“It is bad”
I knew that Cas would take up the case, but I was still surprised. It's bad. Nothing has happened, nothing has changed since the war broke out. Or rather, it has gotten worse. It's terrible that you don't stand up for humanity, says former long-distance star Charlotte Kalla to Aftonbladet.
According to Kalla, it doesn't matter that the skaters compete under a neutral flag.
They will be seen as Russians. And we need an approach and stick to it. Show that we are serious. This is not okay anywhere, she says.
“Normalize the war”
Minister of Sports Jakob Forssmed (KD) is also critical of Cas's decision.
"This unfortunately contributes to normalizing the war. For the Ukrainians, nothing has changed. It is their active members who are being shelled, their trainers who are dying in the war and it is their infrastructure that is being destroyed," he tells TT.
Forssmed says he does not think the Swedish team should mark or protest against Cas's decision during the Olympics.
The Swedish sports movement has been very clear and I am very happy about that. It has really shown leadership on this issue in all international contexts. I think they have already done what can be expected of them, he says.
