European Athletics Council met in Lausanne on Wednesday (15), with preparations for the 2023 European Athletics Congress next month the principle items on the agenda, and used the occasion to reaffirm European Athletics' current position that athletes from Russia and Belarus should remain banned from European Athletics events and activities until the war in Ukraine comes to an end.
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022, the World Athletics Council took the decision on 1 March 2022 to impose sanctions against its Member Federations of Russia and Belarus.
On the same evening, European Athletics Council unanimously decided to follow the World Athletics position and also impose sanctions against its Member Federations of Russia and Belarus.
European Athletics continues to strongly endorse the position outlined initially in the European Athletics statement of 1 March 2022 that “all athletes, support personnel and other officials from Russia and from Belarus will be excluded from participating at any European Athletics’ events for the foreseeable future with immediate effect.”
“With the war in Ukraine having now continued for more than a year, the European Athletics Council wanted to show that we have not wavered in our position concerning the continued ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes, support personnel and other officials, not just from the competitions but all events and activities,” said European Athletics President Dobromir Karamarinov.
“The war has been devastating for Ukraine and, as a sporting organisation, European Athletics notes that this includes Ukraine’s sports infrastructure and its athletes.
"We will continue to support the Athletics Federation of Ukraine so that athletes from that country can still attain their potential despite the tragic situation in Ukraine,” he added.