KYIV – The head coach of the Ukrainian freestyle skiing team said a failure to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from international competition will represent a loss for Ukraine.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has recommended Russians and Belarusians be allowed to return to international competition as neutrals since their ban in 2022 in the wake of Russia’s invasion, which Moscow calls a “special military operation”.

Ukraine’s government has said its athletes will not be allowed to take part in Paris 2024 qualifying events if they have to compete against Russians.

“Every effort must be made to ensure that they are not allowed to participate in international competitions,” Enver Ablaev told Ukraine’s public broadcaster Suspilne on Tuesday.

“If we do not achieve this, it will be our loss.

“If they compete and if our athletes are allowed to compete next to them, it will also be a loss.

“If we decided to ban our athletes from competing alongside the Russians, then this is also a loss.”

Russian and Belarusian athletes remain banned from skiing, but some Olympic sports have readmitted them as neutrals.

The IOC is to make a separate decision on their participation at the Paris Olympics.

Ablaev, who represented Ukraine at three Winter Games, guided Oleksandr Abramenko to aerials gold at the 2018 Olympics.

At Beijing 2022, Abramenko won silver and stood on the podium with bronze medallist Ilia Burov of the Russian Olympic Committee.

“I can’t even imagine how any of our athletes will stand next to a Russian on the same slope or, God forbid, on a pedestal,” Ablaev said.

“We understand (the updated IOC recommendations), but there is currently no 100 per cent ban.

“Many (Russian) athletes openly support Russia’s so-called ‘special military operation’ against Ukraine.

“Therefore, we are sure that it (Russia) has no right to perform in the civilised world.”

On Wednesday, Poland cancelled the women’s foil World Cup set for April 21-23 in Poznan after the international fencing federation (FIE) readmitted Russian and Belarusian athletes in March.

The move came despite Russia already saying they will not send fencers to the Olympic qualifying event because of “unacceptable” conditions,

GB Boxing has also joined the fight against Russia and Belarus after announcing that its boxers will not take part in the April 30-May 14 men’s amateur world championships in Tashkent.

The British boxing body had said in February, when it revealed its snub of March’s women’s championships in India, that it was reviewing the men’s participation.

“The decision reflects ongoing concerns about the future of boxing’s place on the Olympic programme and the recent decision by the International Boxing Association (IBA) to allow teams of boxers from Russia and Belarus to compete under their national flags,” it said on Tuesday.

The Russian-led IBA was stripped of involvement in the Tokyo Olympics and boxing is not on the initial programme for the 2028 Los Angeles Games, pending reforms demanded by the IOC.

Another sport left out of the initial list for 2028 Games is modern pentathlon. However, the sport is hoping that its move from horses to obstacle courses will “offer Los Angeles 2028 and future Olympics organisers a solution that changes the game”. REUTERS