Home » Sport » Belarusian cross-country skiers say they are not allowed to race to support the opposition

Belarusian cross-country skiers say they are not allowed to race to support the opposition

The female runners said that the Belarusian Ski Union deactivated their FIS code in December, an identification number that entitles skiers to compete under the International Ski Union (FIS). According to them, the head of the national cross-country federation, Alexander Darachovich, ordered officials in November to prevent them from starting in international races and participating in national team training camps. Neither the Belarusian Ski Union nor the FIS responded to Reuters’ request for comment.

The female runners appear to be another of the Belarusian athletes who are being punished for opposition views on Alexander Lukashenko’s regime, after the country’s longtime ruler was re-elected to the presidency in 2020 under suspicious circumstances. His critics claim that the election was rigged.

“Officials have literally told me that I support the opposition,” Andryyuk, 22, said in an online interview with Reuters. According to her own words, she never ventured her political views, which she describes as neutral. However, she lost the opportunity to qualify for Beijing and the employment relationship under the head of state. “I don’t want to be here anymore. I want to go to Poland, you can’t live here,” she added.

Photo: Giovanni Auletta, ČTK / AP

Russia’s Natalya Nryaeva became the overall winner of the Tour de Ski.Photo: Giovanni Auletta, CTK / AP

According to Reuters, 17-year-old Dolidovičová is one of the most talented Belarusian cross-country skiers. However, she is also the daughter of Sergei Dolidovich, a participant in the seven Olympic Games, who took an active part in the protests against Lukashenko.

“I did nothing to justify my disqualification and deactivation of the FIS code,” Dolidovicova told Reuters. According to her, it is thus clear that she is being punished for her father’s views, with which she agrees.

The winner of one World Cup race trains his daughter and claims that he stopped working at the national training center when he came under pressure for his support of the opposition. “The state can no longer stand on me, only through my daughter,” Dolidovic said.

Several elite Belarusian athletes have already been punished for supporting Lukashenko’s critics. Last November, for example, Alexandra Romanov, the world champion in acrobatic ski jumping, was briefly detained. Others lost their jobs or their place in the national team.

At the Olympic Games in Tokyo, the runner Kryscina Cimanouská left the Belarusian team under dramatic circumstances, who was forced by the coaches to leave early after the dispute. Cimanouská was afraid to return to her homeland and found asylum in Poland, which she wants to represent in the future.

.

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.