The Parliament of Latvia adopted amendments to the legislation, which prohibit national sports teams from playing against the national teams of Russia and Belarus. The ban will apply even if Russian and Belarusian athletes compete under neutral flags, the press service of the Seimas reported.
Also, Latvia cannot organize national team sports competitions in which Russians or Belarusians will participate under its flag or in a neutral status.
The ban applies to game sports of adult, youth and junior age categories.
"The main goal of the amendments is to once again emphasize Latviaʼs solidarity with Ukraine and fundamentally block any attempts by Russia to legitimize its war crimes through the sports industry," the Seimas emphasized.
If, during the draw, the Latvian national team loses to a rival from Russia or Belarus, international sports organizations will have to respect the laws of Latvia, because previously, in the case of being drawn into the same group with Russians and Belarusians, Latvian teams would either have to play, or receive a technical defeat, or pay a fine.
The amendments do not regulate the participation of Latvian athletes in the Olympic Games.