“I don’t feel my age and I’m ready to fight for podium places in Tokyo. But you see what has been happening in Russian sport over the last two Olympic cycles.
“It all started in Rio [in 2016], then the situation only deteriorated in PyeongChang. I have a feeling that in Tokyo everything will be even worse. I’m 99 percent confident that my participation in the 2020 Olympics will be impossible under the Russian flag,”
That’s 38-year-old Russian cyclist Olga Zabelinskaya, a three-time Olympic medalist in the Time Trial (2012 bronze and 2016 silver) and the 2012 Road Race (bronze), in an interview with Russia’s Match TV.
So what now? Transfer to another country!
The Russian news service TASS reported Thursday that “A source in the Russian Cycling Federation disclosed to TASS also on Monday that Zabelinskaya had already submitted a request with the International Cycling Union (UCI) asking to be transferred to another national sports federation, namely the Cycling Federation of Uzbekistan.”
The Russian Cycling Federation was not impressed. Federation president Vyacheslav Ekimov told the RT news site that it has no interest in cooperating with her request. “Her decision appeared to be an unpleasant surprise for us and we don’t see it possible to approve Zabelinskaya’s intention to compete for another country.”
TASS noted that the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) confirmed Zabelinskaya’s transfer application. According to TASS, “The spokesman for the international organization added that in line with the UCI regulations the athlete will be unable to participate in the UCI World Championship neither this nor next year after changing the sports nationality.”
Uzbekistan’s opinion? They submitted Zabelinskaya’s name on their roster for the Asian Games in Indonesia, starting 18 August!
