Paralympics Ireland stands united
with the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and the European Paralympic
Committee in condemning the actions of the Russian government in Ukraine.
We recognise that participation in
the Paralympic Games is a matter for the IPC and the IPC Governing Board who
are meeting tomorrow, Wednesday 2nd March to discuss Russia’s invasion of
Ukraine.
The actions of the Russian military
in their attack on Ukraine with the support of their allies in Belarus, and
their violation of the Olympic Truce, which is in place until March 20th, 2022,
are unacceptable.
We call upon the International
Paralympic Committee (IPC) to strongly consider excluding athletes from Russia
and Belarus from the Winter Paralympic Games in Beijing and any other
international Paralympic events until this situation has been resolved.
The Ukrainian swim team were a
popular and successful nation that competed at the World Para Swimming Allianz
European Championships in Dublin in 2018. During that time, they conducted
themselves with courtesy and utmost professionalism both in and out of the
pool. We stand in solidarity with the Ukrainian people and the Ukrainian
National Paralympic Committee at this time.
Paralympics Ireland hopes that a
peaceful solution to the situation can be reached, and that sport can be a
channel for peace in the future.
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