Russiaʼs membership in the Paralympic Committee has been suspended

The International Paralympic Committee suspended Russiaʼs membership in the organization.

The decision was made at an extraordinary meeting in Berlin. 64 participating countries voted in favor, 39 were against, and 16 abstained.

The committee explained its decision by the fact that Russia “cannot fulfill its obligations” according to the statute of the Paralympic Committee. Now the Russian Federation can appeal this decision, but only the general assembly of the committee can cancel it. Its next meeting will be held at the end of 2023.

• On March 3, the Paralympic Committee removed athletes from Russia and Belarus from participating in the 2022 Winter Paralympics in Beijing against the backdrop of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Then a number of national teams expressed their reluctance to compete with Russians and Belarusians. The Russian Paralympic Committee called the ban illegal and unfounded.