Athletes raising rights abuses must be protected, UN says ahead of Olympics

Athletes must be able to speak out on rights abuses such as racism and discrimination without fear of reprisals, the UN human rights chief insisted Monday ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Volker Turk said the Games, which begin on July 26, would be taking place against a backdrop of wars, and praised the courage of athletes who highlight rights violations.

He was speaking at the UN Human Rights Council alongside International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach.

But during the subsequent debate, Russia lashed out at its exclusion from Paris 2024 over its war in Ukraine, accusing the IOC of “sordid tactics” and “collective punishment” of its athletes.

Sports, like human rights, promote fairness, respect and equal opportunities, Turk told the rights council in Geneva.

However, sports were not immune from human rights challenges, including during landmark events like the Olympics, he noted.

“Some worrying issues are more visible than others: racist or sexist incidents, abuse, violence against women, corruption; discrimination on the basis of religion or religious attire, disability, nationality or sexual orientation and gender identity,” he said.

But Turk said important progress had been made, citing the sentencing in Spain last month of three football fans for racially abusing Real Madrid’s Brazilian forward Vinicius Junior.

Turk said athletes were increasingly speaking out, either because they had been subjected to human rights violations themselves or were denouncing systemic injustice.

“This takes tremendous courage and must be honoured,” he said.

“They often speak out at great risk to themselves and their careers. 

“These athletes must be supported and protected… by ensuring that they have avenues to speak out and seek redress safely and without fear of reprisals.”

Bach however said the IOC could not solve human rights issues which generations of politicians had been unable to fix.

That said, “in these divisive times, with wars and conflicts on the rise, it has never been more important to build inclusive communities. Sport is the low-cost, high-impact tool for all countries to do this,” he said.

Russia denounces ‘discrimination’

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, within a week of the Beijing Winter Games closing ceremony, violated the Olympic truce and charter. The IOC duly sanctioned Moscow and its ally Belarus.

Russia’s representative at the Human Rights Council said athletes from some countries were being “illegally banned” for “geopolitical reasons”.

It said the “double standards, segregation and discrimination based on nationality” displayed by the IOC was a “violation of basic human rights”.

“In their efforts to cancel Russian and Belarusian sport, the leadership of the IOC and countries of the West do not shy away from the most sordid tactics. Graft, threats and blackmail.”

Ukraine’s representative responded that Russia had “killed over 450 Ukrainian athletes, including world champions”, while the Russian military had “destroyed more than 500 sports facilities” in Ukraine.

Meanwhile the Palestinian representative said in the ongoing war in Gaza, Israel had violated the Olympic Charter.

“We call on the IOC to expel Israeli apartheid from the Paris Olympic Games,” she said.

“There is no place for genocide, war crimes and ethnic cleansing at the Olympic Games.

“We call on all member states to refuse to compete in any code in which Israeli apartheid is present.”