Confusion Erupts as Paris Olympics’ ‘Neutral’ Decision Leaves Russian and Belarusian Tennis Stars in a Limbo

Ever since the Ukraine conflict erupted last year, Russian and Belarusian players have been on the edge. They have been shunned by the sporting world on account of geopolitical tensions. Take the example of tennis. Last year, Russian and Belarusian players weren’t allowed to play at the Wimbledon Championships, one of the sport’s oldest tournaments. Recently, another major announcement ahead of the Paris Olympics put another severe blow to them.

There have been question marks about whether Russian and Belarusian players will be allowed to participate in the Olympic games next year. The International Olympic Committee finally broke its silence as it cleared the air on their participation.

What did the IOC say about the Paris Olympics participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes?

Recently, the IOC dropped a set of rules for the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes at the Paris Olympics next year. However, it led to confusion as the tennis stars from these two countries were left in limbo.

The first condition was that qualified athletes with Russian and Belarusian passports would be allowed to participate in the Paris Olympics as neutrals. Further, the IOC also said that teams of athletes with a Russian or Belarusian passport won’t be considered.

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As a result, it meant that doubles and mixed doubles pairs in tennis comprising players from Russia and Belarus wouldn’t be allowed to play. It is yet to be found out why the IOC has banned the teams from these two countries while allowing individual players to participate. The Russian teams were highly successful in the previous edition in Tokyo but have suffered an unfortunate fate following the IOC’s announcement.

Huge blow to Russian athletes

During the Tokyo Olympics a few years ago, Russia was one of the most successful countries in tennis. They won the mixed doubles gold medal when Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova and Andrey Rublev teamed up to win the mixed doubles gold medal.

They defeated compatriots Elena Vesnina and Aslan Karatsev to clinch the top honor. Additionally, Russian star Karen Khachanov won the silver medal, capping off a successful event for Russia. However, with the IOC’s latest updates, these athletes have been in limbo over their participation.

Only time will tell how their fate pans out. The Paris Olympic Games will commence on 26 July 2024 and will end on 11 August 2024. It’ll be interesting to see how the event pans out for tennis as a sport.

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