At the Paris Olympics, AIN hides the identity of the few Russian and Belarusian athletes
A gold medal was finally won at the Paris Olympics by one of the neutral collective of athletes
PARIS (AP) — Exactly one week after thousands of athletes sailed through the opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics, a gold medal was finally won Friday by a member of the neutral collective of athletes.
Ivan Litvinovich was barred from boarding a boat on the River Seine — just like all 32 athletes from Russia and Belarus whose Olympic team identity has been made almost invisible because of their nations' military invasion of Ukraine.
When standing on the top step of the podium, Litvinovich was prohibited from hearing the Belarus anthem. Playing instead was a nondescript, wordless tune commissioned by the International Olympic Committee.
These are the Olympic rules of engagement for the 32 athletes who were vetted and approved — and accepted their invitations — to come to France and compete for the team-that’s-not-a-team.
