War in Ukraine: "Decisions on war and peace are the exclusive remit of politics" (T. Bach, IOC)

"Everybody in the Olympic community wishes we could be more than a symbol and an inspiration. But we have had to learn once again the hard lessons that sport cannot create peace, and that decisions on war and peace are the exclusive remit of politics," said Thomas Bach (GER), president of the IOC, in a letter to the Olympic Movement, on 11/03/2022.

"In my closing speech (at the Beijing Olympic Games on Sunday 20/02/2022) I expressed the hope that these leaders would be inspired by the 'example of solidarity and peace' having been set by the athletes. Just four days later all our hopes for Ukraine were shattered," regretted the president of the IOC regarding Russia's invasion of Ukraine led by Vladimir Putin that began on Thursday 24/02/2022.

"We will continue to expose the people and organisations responsible for this war in breach of the Olympic Truce," said Bach. This truce, adopted by the UN general assembly on 02/12/2021, began seven days before the start of the Beijing Olympic Winter Games (04/02/2022) and ends seven days after the end of the Paralympic Games (13/03/2022). It…