No more possible doubt: Sebastian Coe continues to lead his boat, and especially that of athletics, away from the rest of the Olympic movement. He advances according to his own convictions, not always in unison with those of the IOC and other international bodies.
After having been the only international federation to rule out any idea of the presence of neutral athletes carrying a Russian passport at the Paris 2024 Games, World Athletics shook up the rules and practices by announcing last April its decision to distribute bonuses in dollars (50.000) to the gold medalists next month in France.
Less than a month before the Paris 2024 Games, Sebastian Coe made another splash by traveling to Ukraine last weekend for a very official two-day visit. It was not announced. It was revealed afterwards by a double press release from World Athletics.
Coincidence or not, the Briton's visit to Ukraine came at a time when the IOC is gradually completing its list of Russian and Belarusian athletes declared eligible for neutrality status, and therefore invited to participate in the Paris 2024 Games. In its latest version, it has 47 names (28 Russians, 19 Belarusians). To date, only 20 of them have accepted the IOC's invitation to go to the Games.
In Ukraine, Sebastian Coe talked about sport. Especially sport. He attended the national athletics championships on Saturday June 29, held in Lviv, qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Games. According to a press release from the body, he passed “ several hours meeting the athletes, many of whom benefited from the World Athletics Fund for Ukraine. »
Launched in 2022, at the start of the Russian invasion, then extended last year, this financial and material aid is financed by World Athletics, by the International Athletics Foundation and by members of the Association of Diamond League. In particular, it enabled 29 Ukrainian athletes to prepare and then participate in the 2023 world championships in Budapest.
« At the 2023 World Championships in Budapest, like last month at the European Championships in Rome, I always told Ukrainian athletes: “If you can come to our championships, I can come to yours”. It was therefore important for me to be present this weekend at their national championships before the Paris Olympic Games, explained Sebastian Coe. I was deeply moved by the resilience and determination of the athletes. When we arrived at the stadium, an air raid siren sounded and delayed the start of the 200 meters. This is the harsh, sobering reality and challenges that athletes face day in and day out.”
So much for sport. Politics now. In Ukraine, the president of World Athletics did not only interact with athletes. He also met the Head of State, Volodymyr Zelensky, Friday June 28 in Kyiv.
The two men discussed the prospect of additional support from World Athletics for Ukrainian athletics, including through a new program dedicated to athletes aged 18 to 22 and their coaches. The initiative could allow them to continue participating in international competitions.
Above all, Sebastian Coe invited Volodymyr Zelensky to go to the Paris 2024 Games and attend the athletics events. An invitation more personal than formal. The Briton did it in his name and not in the name of the IOC. Then he explained to a team of CNN, present exclusively throughout the trip to Ukraine: “I took the opportunity to make it clear to Volodymyr Zelensky that if he goes to Paris, he has an open invitation to follow the number one Olympic sport. I'm not sure his schedule will allow him to make the trip. But I think he became a little more receptive to the idea as our conversation progressed."
Always according CNN, Volodymyr Zelensky repeated once again that “neutrality does not exist when a war like this is underway". Very critical of the IOC and its decision to invite Russian athletes to the Paris 2024 Games, he insisted that “any neutral flag of Russian athletes is stained with blood ». Sebastian Coe did not say otherwise.
