The Netherlands refuses to host European Para Swimming Championships due to Russia’s participation (translation in comments)

The Netherlands was supposed to host the European Paralympic Swimming Championships this year, but has decided to withdraw. The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) requires that Russians and Belarusians be allowed to compete under their own flag. The decision to return the organization of the tournament was made in consultation with ministries in The Hague, says Arnoud Strijbis, director of the Dutch Swimming Federation (KNZB), to Nieuwsuur. The Ministry of Health, Welfare, and Sport confirms: “The Netherlands does not want a European Para Swimming Championship where Russians and Belarusians (under their own flag and anthem) would participate. Participation under a fully neutral flag and without an anthem is allowed.”

The IPC demanded that the KNZB ensure the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes under their own flag, says Strijbis. “But we do not decide on the admission of people to the Netherlands; that is determined by the national government. So, we can never guarantee that someone can participate under their own flag.” Strijbis: “We have therefore concluded that we cannot meet what they wanted to include in the contract.”

Cancellation?

It is not yet clear if and where the swimming tournament will still take place. A cancellation would be bad news for European athletes who want to participate in the next Paralympic Summer Games. “Athletes then have less chance to qualify,” explains Raymon Blondel, chairman of the European Paralympic Committee. “For now, there is no alternative country raising its hand and saying: I want to organize that.”

“It is absolutely embarrassing and unacceptable that Russian Paralympians are allowed to participate at all.”
– Evgeniy Levchenko

After the large-scale doping fraud during the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi and the Russian invasion of Ukraine, athletes from the two countries were only allowed to participate under a neutral, Olympic flag for years. But in September last year, the IPC ended the suspension for the Paralympic Games. This means they must also be able to participate in qualifying competitions, Blondel explains. “The European Championship is part of the qualification route towards the Games in Los Angeles in 2028.”

Boycott

Next week, six Russian and four Belarusian Paralympians will compete under their own flag at the Winter Games in Milan. Several countries are boycotting the opening ceremony in protest. Especially in Ukraine, the decision leads to anger. “It is absolutely embarrassing and unacceptable,” says former Ukrainian professional footballer Evgeniy Levchenko. “Ukrainians look at this with incomprehension and disbelief.”

NOC*NSF is also against the participation of Russians under the Russian flag. The sports federation does not send officials to events at the Games where the Russian or Belarusian flag is visible or where the anthem of either country is played.

At the IPC meeting in September, 91 countries were in favor of the return of athletes from Russia and Belarus, 77 against, including the Netherlands. According to Blondel, the vote was plagued by technical problems, so voting had to be done with slips of paper. “And there was a lot of time pressure, so there was hardly any debate.”

Sport and Politics

According to Russia, sport should be separate from politics. But Levchenko points out that Russia itself uses sport for political gain. “The argument ‘athletes are not responsible for the actions of the country’ does not hold. Athletes are used by Russia for international legitimacy.” Levchenko: “During elections, athletes are used as figureheads of the regime, often with direct ties to the military or security services. They are not accidental participants, but cogs in a propaganda machine that distorts reality, manipulates public trust, and creates the illusion that everything is ‘normal’ when it clearly is not.”

As far as Blondel is concerned, athletes from Russia and Belarus should only participate again under a neutral flag. “Then there is no argument for organizers not to organize European events, and you create a situation that is safe and enjoyable for all athletes.”

Edit: fixed small translation error

Hey, we did an actually good thing for once 😀 Eternally displeasing for the athletes though.

Remember MH17? We do.

Okay. Let me get this straight:
1. the Dutch government doesn’t want Russians to compete under their own flag, but under a neutral flag they think it’s okay. So the people themselves are not the problem, it’s just the flag(anthem and so on) that’s the problem.
2. the KNZB claims they can’t sign a contract because they don’t decide who enters the country.

But can a EU government even disallow people entry based on those condition? Because I don’t think they can, unless those people are on some sanction list or are a security risk. If they aren’t, there are very strict rules for why someone can be denied entry. And the country of origin is specifically not one of those. The government also already confirmed that the people themselves are not the issue in their own statement.

The only other way the government could stop an event like this, is if they would cancel the entire thing. Can they do that? Can you cancel an event simple because a flag is being flown and an anthem is being played? I’m honestly not sure, but I don’t think they can do that either under current law.

So the only conclusion I can come to, is that the KNZB themselves doesn’t want to organize the even either, but are giving a spineless answer about not being able to sign the contract.

Or am I missing something?

And don’t get me wrong, I think this is a good move, but why don’t organizations like these just grow a spine? Because they could have made an actual statement. Now they’re just pussyfooting around the issue.

Aside from the war in Ukraine, we remember that on 17 July 2014 Russia murdered 196 Dutch civilians by shooting down a passenger airliner.

Good.

I sure hope Israel is not participating then.

Hopefully all countries will do that