Rio de Janeiro, Sep 8: The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) has revoked the accreditation of a Belarusian athlete for carrying Russia’s flag during the opening ceremony of the 2016 Rio Games as a gesture of solidarity with the country banned from the Games.
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An alternative competition among Paralympians has kicked off in Moscow after the entire Russian Paralympics team was banned from participating in Rio 2016 Paralympics by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). Events are scheduled to be held in “Novogorsk” training center, as well as the “Ozero Krugloye” and “Krylatskoe” sports centers. The scandal cost Russian track and field athletes an appearance at the Rio 2016 Olympics and has called into question Russian results spanning several Olympic games.
The RPC president added: “We are all sending our honest greetings to the Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro since we are all brothers and sisters and in the Paralympic family and wish that the Games there will be good”. Paralympic officials say that no sports or nations have been cut out, but the “athlete experience” could suffer.
A World Anti-Doping Agency report in July said the Russian government and its security service had covered up hundreds of doping cases across Olympic and Paralympic events over the course of many years.
“In a country which has faced major challenges of late, Paralympians will switch your focus from perceived limitations to a world full of possibility and endless opportunity”, Craven said.
The 21 athletes in the Malaysian Paralympics contingent will be competing in eight of the 23 sports contested with athletics, powerlifting and cycling identified as medal prospects.
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At the 2012 Paralympics in London, the Malaysian Paralympics contingent came home with a silver and bronze medal through archer Hasihin Sanawi from men’s Recurve and Muhammad Ziyad Zolkefli from the men’s shot put respectively.
