A Russian politician had suggested introducing punishments for athletes who swap citizenship
A call for Russian athletes to be considered traitors if they swap nationality is unlikely to gain support, according to presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Russian athletes across a wide range of sports have been sidelined due to bans imposed by international federations following the onset of Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine.
That has triggered debate inside Russia about the possibility of more and more athletes seeking to compete under foreign flags to avoid suspensions.
In an apparent bid to deter that from happening, State Duma deputy Roman Teryushkov issued a proposal on his Telegram channel for any athletes turning their backs on Russia to face charges of treason.
Teryushkov noted the costs of developing the athletes inside the Russian sporting system, which he suggested was a wasted investment if they then represented other countries.
“Over the past 10 years, 93 athletes have changed their sports citizenship,” said the politician, who is a member of the United Russia party.
Numerous Russian sporting figures have been asked for their opinions on the nationality change in recent months after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended its ban on all Russian athletes on February 28.
Former world heavyweight boxing champion Nikolai Valuev – now a Duma Deputy – recently said he did not think Russia would be see an exodus of talent, but nonetheless warned that any athletes making a switch would not be looked upon kindly.
“God is the judge for those who still make such a decision. But will the Olympic medal be sweet in their life? Will they not have to while away their lives in oblivion in a foreign land?” asked Valuev.
“In Russia they can probably forgive people for almost everything, but they do not forgive betrayal… You know, in our history even murderers became saints. But traitors – never.”
In contrast, former Olympic ice dance gold medalist Tatiana Navka – who is married to Kremlin spokesman Peskov – has suggested athletes should not be judged too harshly if they change nationalities.
“As for athletes changing citizenship, I can say that you should not react so sharply to their actions and tar everyone with the same brush,”Navka said back in April.
“It is not worth indiscriminately calling everyone traitors. Everyone has their own life, their own story, and their own reasons. Everyone has the right to their choice.”
https://ift.tt/aKWhYyz 18, 2022 at 02:23PM
from RT – Daily news
