Türkiye’s sports minister calls restrictions on Belarusian athletes unfair

Photo courtesy of the NOC of Belarus

MINSK, 5 April (BelTA) – President of the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Belarus Viktor Lukashenko met with the heads of sports authorities from Türkiye and Russia at the 8th Ethnosport Forum in Antalya, BelTA learned from the NOC press service.

The head of the NOC held talks with Russia’s Minister of Sport Mikhail Degtyarev and Türkiye’s Minister of Youth and Sports Osman Aşkın Bak who noted that international structures are subjecting Belarusian athletes to unfair and discriminatory treatment by preventing them from competing on an equal footing.

“This is wrong and very unjust. There are currently many military conflicts in the world. We hope that Belarusian athletes will soon be able to compete on the international stage without restrictions,” said Osman Aşkın Bak.

Discussions with the sports officials focused on deepening cooperation between federations, organizing joint training camps and competitions, developing youth sports, training sports personnel, as well as exchanging coaching experience and expertise in the medical field.