IOC President invites Palestinian athletes to Olympics even if they don't qualify

International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach invites Palestinian athletes to the Paris Olympics even if they don’t qualify. According to Thomas, around six to eight Palestinian athletes will participate in the Olympics in Paris.

Thomas Bach revealed it while giving a telephone interview to AFP in Switerzland. He said several sports still had qualification rounds for the Paris Games, which begin on July 26.

Palestinian athletes to be invited to Paris Olympics: Bach to AFP https://t.co/jx5JtqKflz
— Al-Monitor (@AlMonitor) April 27, 2024

However, they have made a clear commitment that even if no Palestinian athlete qualified on the field of play, the NOC (National Olympic Committee) of Palestine, would benefit from invitations- while other national Olympic Committees do not have a qualified athlete.

Thomas said the IOC has supported Palestinian athletes in several ways to allow them to participate in qualifications and to continue their training from day one of the conflict in Gaza. It came in the aftermath of the Israel-Hamas war started on October 7, 2023.

According to rough estimates, about 1,270 Israelis died as a result of an attack on Israel on October 7 by Palestinian militants Hamas. On the other hand, 34,356 Palestinians have passed away as a result of Israeli retaliatory strikes in Gaza. The majority of affected Palestinians are women and children.

Hence, the IOC President invites Palestinian athletes to the Paris Olympics 2024 even if they fail in the qualification rounds.

Click here to read the updates on the IOC banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from Olympics 2024

Regarding another global issue Russia-Ukraine conflict, Thomas refused claims that the IOC has handled Russia’s invasion of Ukraine differently than it has Israel’s conflict in Gaza.

It came after Russia was banned from several international sports including Paris Olympics 2024 following its invasion of Ukraine. IOC has imposed conditions for Russian athletes to participate in the Olympics without the national flag.

Moreover, the Russian military and security services must not have employed the participating athletes. They must have never openly supported the war against Ukraine.