Delicate weekend for the American Olympic committee. The day after Donald Trump signed an executive order banning nationals from seven Muslim countries from entering the United States for a period of 90 days, Friday, January 27, the USOC management team spent the most time clear of two days to multiply telephone calls to Washington. Objective: to obtain all assurances from the American government that this travel ban would not have an impact on athletes called to travel to the country for international competitions.
Judging by the first information, which is still incomplete, the USOC's approach has obtained the hoped-for results. Its president, Larry Probst, also a member of the IOC, and its general director, Scott Blackmun (photo above, from left to right), announced it via a press release sent during the day of Monday January 30: the American government assured that athletes from all countries would gain preferred entry to the United States for international sports competitions.
At least one of them can claim otherwise. Meisam Rafiei, a taekwondo specialist carrying an Icelandic passport, was due to travel to Las Vegas to participate in the US Open. He was not allowed to enter the United States. Now Icelandic, the athlete was born in Iran. “On my way to Las Vegas to play the US Open for Iceland with my Icelandic passport, I was prevented from doing so because I was born in Iran,” he wrote on his Facebook account.
Obviously, Meisam Rafiei showed up too early at an immigration counter, in the middle of chaos, before the USOC and the American government had time to agree.
However, what happens next remains unclear. An Archery World Cup is planned for Las Vegas, starting February 10. An Iranian team would be likely to participate, Iran having sent an archer to the Rio 2016 Games. But its status is not yet known. Same uncertainty regarding the American wrestling team which must normally go to Iran for a World Cup. The president of the federation, USA Wrestling, assured that the wrestlers' trip was not threatened. To have.
A handful of international events are planned in the United States within 90 days of implementation of the anti-immigration decree signed by Donald Trump. Let us cite, in bulk, the Boston Marathon, an international indoor athletics meeting, events of the UCI cycling season... So many competitions for which, according to the USOC press release, athletes from all countries will meet grant a right of entry to American soil.
A few days before the start of the international campaign of candidate cities for the 2024 Games, the task for the Americans is not simple. They must preserve every chance of Los Angeles 2024, while respecting the rules imposed by the new administration in Washington.
Delicate. The wording of the USOC press release illustrates this. After recognizing that "the Olympic movement was founded on the principles of diversity and inclusion", its two signatories, Larry Probst and Scott Blackmun, write that, in their capacity as representatives in the United States of the Olympic movement, they “embrace these values.” But they add: “We also recognize the difficult task of ensuring the security of a nation. »
For its part, the IOC observes a silence whose echo could soon become heavy. The Olympic organization contented itself with a press release on Monday, only a handful of words, where it specified that it was not “commenting on the policies of sovereign states. »
