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≡ INTEL REPORT ≡
The Russian government will exert more influence in all sectors of Russian sport, including the Russian Olympic Committee. That’s from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who explained to the Russian Council for the Development of Physical Culture and Sports on Thursday:
“The coordination of joint work of government bodies, state organizations and private businesses is assigned to the Ministry of Sports. This is a necessary measure in modern conditions and a very big responsibility. …
“The sphere of physical education and sports is directly related to solving such important tasks as preserving the population, realizing the potential of each person, increasing the level of well-being of Russian families, therefore any activity in this sphere should be of a national, interdepartmental nature, be coordinated, clear, effective, built around common goals and common performance indicators.”
To that end, he also instructed the national sports federations on their role in youth sports development:
“The activities of federations in sports require updating. Let me remind you that it is not limited to issues of professional sports and high-performance sports.
“The volume of support for federations from all sources must be linked, among other things, to their contribution to the development of mass sports: amateur, corporate, youth.”
Putin also pointed to the Russian Olympic Committee, expected to name a new president in December:
“The activities of the Russian Olympic Committee also need adjustments. Despite all the known problems, it is important to increase efforts in the area of international cooperation, to work with all interested partners, to conduct creative, meaningful, educational work to promote the universal values of sport, especially among young people.”
So, it made perfect sense for fairly new Russian Minister of Sport, Mikhail Degtyarev, to instantly become a candidate for the ROC presidency, saying he is ready to run but will continue to respect the “autonomy” of the ROC required by the Olympic Charter.
Already, the lone Russian member of the International Olympic Committee, Shamil Tarpischev, is on board:
“The time has come to consolidate efforts in sports activities. The issue of considering the possibility of our Minister Degtyarev putting forward his candidacy for the post of President of the National Olympic Committee has matured. Power in one hand will perhaps allow us to work more effectively for the benefit of our Motherland.”
Putin, at another conference, did not miss an opportunity to slam the Olympic Movement:
“Today it is already obvious that they are trying to make world sports and the Olympic movement not an arena for fair competitions, but a platform for geopolitical games, for the imposition of a destructive, neoliberal agenda, the propaganda of unnatural norms and pseudo-freedoms and the denial of traditional values, by which the overwhelming majority of countries and peoples of the planet have lived for centuries, millennia.”
Observed: OK, is there now any doubt of the outcome of December’s Russian Olympic Committee elections?
Degtyarev has only been the Russian Minister of Sport since 24 May of this year, but at 43 and a member of the State Duma from 2011-2020, he is fully integrated into the Russian government.
The direct, effective, publicly-announced control of the ROC by the Russian government will now be another potential headache for the International Olympic Committee, either to be handled at the end of the year or in January by President Thomas Bach (GER), or by a successor, who will take office on 24 June 2025.
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