The Olympic rings of the 2016 Summer Games are creaking, but turning, and there is less and less time left before the opening ceremony of this year's main sports tournament. The current Olympics began their journey long before August 5 - with scandals about the expulsion of Russian athletes. And there is no doubt that the Games in Rio de Janeiro will be remembered first of all by this side, far from sports.
But be that as it may, life goes on, and sports too. The Russian Olympic team has already arrived in Brazil. The official website of the Olympiad published the composition of the Russian delegation, it included 271 people. However, it is still not completely clear which of them will be allowed to take part in the Games, and who will not. Americans are outraged because of the Russian flag on the uniform of the national team
Sports courts and commissions are still deciding the issue of admitting Russian athletes to the Olympics on an individual basis, and the cases will be resolved until the opening day.
The confusion here is such that the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and a specially created commission now and then postpone press conferences, fearing to comment on something, and cancel each other's decisions. As the journalists in Rio joke bitterly, it will come to the point that the Russians will be disqualified after the start of the Olympics - right during the competition, or even the awards.
Those Russian athletes who are still allowed to compete will have to compete for absent colleagues - including track and field athletes who were excommunicated from the Games all in a crowd, without dividing into right and wrong.
This, in the opinion of boxer Misha Aloyan, should add to their sports anger. “We will fight for our entire country, because our most powerful athletes in athletics were removed from participation in the Olympic Games. Therefore, we will fight for them too, ”promised the bronze medalist of the 2012 Games in London.
Russian flag in Rio - almost like a miracle
On the opening day, the Russian national team will take place in front of the stands, along with other delegations. And our team will be led, as it should be, by a standard-bearer with the Russian tricolor. It is strange to remember that just a few days ago, even the fact that we would see this flag at the Games in Rio raised doubts. Sports officials expect Russians to be warmly welcomed in the stands - fans around the world resent the harassment of Russian athletes, considering it unfair.
An experienced 40-year-old volleyball player Sergei Tetyukhin was instructed to carry the flag of the Russian national team. Traditionally, the flag-bearer in the national team is chosen at the meeting by the athletes themselves - the captains of the teams in various sports. Among the requirements that this person must meet are his sporting achievements, the presence of Olympic medals and authority among colleagues.
Also, when choosing, the schedule of performances at the Olympics is taken into account, because participation in the opening ceremony with a flag in hand turns into considerable physical and psychological stress. The standard bearer will have to hold the flag weighing several kilograms for at least half an hour. Needless to say, in this case, many eyes will be riveted to him. You also need to take into account the three-hour wait for the start of the celebration and two hours of the opening ceremony itself. That is why not all eminent athletes become standard-bearers.
Standard bearers of the past, led by Karelin
In the history of the national teams of Russia, the CIS and the USSR, there were 25 standard-bearers, some of the athletes were awarded this honor more than once. Separate here is Alexander Karelin from Novosibirsk, who carried the flag three times at the opening of the Games, with three teams - the USSR (in 1988 in Seoul), the CIS (in 1992 in Barcelona) and Russia (in 1996 in Atlanta). Weightlifter Yuri Vlasov, wrestler Nikolai Balboshin, hockey player Vladislav Tretyak and skier Alexei Prokurorov were the standard bearers twice. Analysts predicted Russia's place in the medal standings of the Olympics
Weightlifter Yakov Kutsenko became the first Olympic standard-bearer in the USSR. It happened in 1952 at the XV Summer Olympics in Helsinki. At the Winter Games, the Soviet Union made its debut in 1956 in the Italian Cortina-D "Ampezzo, then the flag was entrusted to carry the skater Oleg Goncharenko.
In recent years, swimmer Alexander Popov (Athens), speed skater Dmitry Dorofeev (Turin), basketball player Andrei Kirilenko (Beijing), hockey player Alexei Morozov (Vancouver), bobsledder Alexander Zubkov (Sochi) have become the standard-bearers of the Russian national team.
We should also mention tennis player Maria Sharapova, who carried the Russian flag at the opening ceremony of the Games in London four years ago. She is the only woman in the glorious list of Russian flag-bearers.
The harder the better we perform
For Sergei Tetyukhin, the Rio Olympics will be the sixth. Since Sydney 2000, he and the team have never been left without a medal. He has two bronzes, one silver and one gold, and the last one was mined at the previous Games in London.
The volleyball player's participation in the London Olympics was questionable - doctors diagnosed him with a heart rhythm disorder and only a month before the start of the competition allowed him to resume training. After the 2012 Games, Tetyukhin announced the end of his performances for the national team, but in July 2015 he returned and helped her win a ticket to Rio. To date, the athlete has played 312 official matches for the national team, in which he scored 2418 points and 514 played serves, which is an absolute record.
“I will be given the honor to go ahead of the column, to go under the flag of a great power, a great country,” Tetyukhin commented on his appointment.
He also spoke about the situation around the Russian Olympic team: “There, in Rio, we need to fight for ourselves and for them. It will not be easy, it will be very difficult. But you know that the Russian people get stronger in difficult times. The more difficult the circumstances, the better we perform. "
In general, given the situation, experts are cautious with predictions about the performance of Russian athletes. “We do not make any predictions about medals,” stressed Alexander Zhukov, President of the Russian Olympic Committee. But the Minister of Sports Vitaly Mutko is more frank. “Our athletes will take part in 30 out of 34 sports. And at 19-20 we will be competitive,” the head of the Ministry of Sports promised.
As the Consul General of the Russian Federation in Rio de Janeiro Vladimir Tokmakov said, about 12 thousand Russian fans will attend the Olympic Games. The opening ceremony of the Olympics will take place on August 5 at the Maracanã stadium. In Russia, this time will already come on August 6. The ceremony starts at 2.00 Moscow time.
CHISINAU, 8 Sep - Sputnik. The 15th Summer Paralympic Games have opened in Rio de Jainero, for the first time they are held without athletes from Russia who have participated in all Paralympics since 1992.
During the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games in Rio, which took place at the Maracanã stadium, Belarusian athletes walked with the Russian flag at the parade of the participating national teams in solidarity with the Russian Paralympians suspended from the competition.
According to the vice-president of the Russian Paralympic Committee Rima Batalova, the removal of the Russian flag was expected, but no one knew in advance that the Belarusian athletes would muster the courage and marry with the flag at the very opening of the Paralympic Games.
“This athlete should be rewarded for supporting our team,” said Rima Batalova. “For not flinching. You see, the feat was indeed accomplished. The Belarusians understood what they were doing. And this athlete really didn’t flinch. I am very grateful to him for doing this and I am grateful to the Belarusian team, because I think that some common decision was made.
Rima Batalova also cited the words of the President of the Paralympic Committee of Belarus, Oleg Shepel, who said that the Russian flag would definitely be in Rio.
“The exit with the flag looked powerful, good and beautiful,” Batalova shared her impressions. “I was waiting for this moment. Will they do it or not? "And the Belarusians did it. They are just great!"
The name of the Belarusian hero in Rio is Andrei Fomochkin, reports Sputnik Belarus.
The 53-year-old sports functionary, whose name was recognized by the entire world community, worked as a trainer-teacher of the sports school of the Minsk region, held a number of leading positions in state and commercial organizations, since 2007 in the directorate of national teams, from 2008 to 2010 he was assistant to the Minister of Sports and Tourism , from 2010 to 2012 - Chairman of the Directorate of National Teams for Winter Sports of the Ministry of Sports and Tourism.
Andrey Fomochkin is an international master of sports, winner and prize-winner of the Spartakiad of the Peoples of the USSR (1986), the USSR record holder in the winter all-around.
Meanwhile, the world media assessed negatively the action of solidarity between Belarusians and Russians.
The American edition of the International Business Times writes that the Paralympic Games in Rio opened with a spectacular ceremony, which was wonderful, except for one drawback - the violation of the IPC ban by the Belarusian national team.
The British The Telegraph came out with the headline "The opening ceremony of the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio gave a spectacular and yet spicy start to the Games, despite the pro-Russian protest of Belarus."
The opening ceremony of the Paralympics in Rio, according to the author of the article in the Guardian, was "spoiled" by the protest of the Belarusian team against the removal of Russian athletes.
It is noteworthy that the head of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Thomas Bach will not attend any of the Paralympics events. The official reason is the busy schedule of the functionary.
Earlier it was reported that Bach will not be at the opening of the Paralympic Games, as he should attend the mourning ceremony dedicated to the former President of Germany Walter Scheel, who died on August 24 at the age of 97.
Foreign media have already noted that the absence of Bach, who became the first IOC head who has not attended the opening ceremony of the Paralympics since 1984, is due to tensions between the IOC and the IPC due to a different position on the participation of Russian athletes in the 2016 Games.
The IOC did not remove the entire Russian national team from the 2016 Olympics, allowing athletes not involved in the use of doping.
At the 2016 Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, 528 sets of medals will be played in 22 sports, for the first time triathlon and paracanoe were included in the program.
More than 4,300 athletes from more than 160 countries will take part in the competition, including a refugee team under the IPC flag - it includes two athletes. The Games will end on September 18.
The closing ceremony of the XXXI Summer Olympic Games took place at the Maracanã stadium in Rio de Janeiro. More than three thousand volunteers marched through the arena, after which a parade of athletes took place. The flag of the Russian Federation was carried by five-time Olympic champions in synchronized swimming Natalya Ishchenko and Svetlana Romashina.
As a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), two-time Olympic champion Elena Isinbayeva also took part in the ceremony.
Before the head of the IOC, Thomas Bach, announced the closure of the Games, he handed the Olympic flag to representatives from Tokyo. It is in this city that the next Summer Olympic Games in 2020 will take place.
Despite the fact that in the history of Russian sports now is not the easiest period, the Russian national team showed an excellent result at the Games, taking fourth place: our athletes have 56 medals - 19 gold, 18 silver, 19 bronze.
President of Russia Vladimir Putin in his video message to the participants of the PLOTFORMA S-70 international combat sambo tournament in Sochi, he noted that the Russian Olympians demonstrated real skill, courage, endurance and will to win at the Games in Rio de Janeiro.
“I am sure that all fighters will show real skill, endurance, courage and will, perseverance in achieving their goals. These qualities were fully demonstrated by the Russian Olympians in Rio de Janeiro. And I am glad to note that representatives of various types of martial arts traditionally made a significant contribution to the medal box of our team ”.
Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev highly appreciated the performance of the Russian national team in Rio: “Our Olympians are great! The Olympics in Rio de Janeiro were not the easiest in the history of Russian sports. But, despite the fact that many of our athletes did not take part in the competition, the athletes showed excellent results. Congratulate everyone! See you in Moscow! "
Editorial staff mger2020. ru recalls the brightest performances of Russian athletes at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Judoka on the first day of competition Beslan Mudranov brought Russia the first "gold".
.jpg)
On the same day, the Russian national shooting and archery team Inna Stepanova, Ksenia Perova and Tuyana Dashidorzhieva won the silver medal of the Games during the team championship.
.jpg)
Vitalina Batsarashkina also won a silver medal in air pistol shooting from 10 meters.
The next competition day, August 7, began for Russia with a bronze medal. Third place in judo bout took Natalia Kuzyutina.
.jpg)
Timur Safin in fencing on foil in the match for the third place he defeated Briton Richard Kruse with a score of 15:13. “Bronze, it is also bronze in Africa, is better than“ wooden ”, - the rapier himself commented on his performance.
.jpg)
On August 8, Russians brought gold and silver in saber fencing Yana Yegoryan and Sophia the Great... For the first time in the past 20 years, the Russians met face to face in the final. As a result, Yana has "gold", Sophia has "silver".
.jpg)
The gymnasts of the Russian national team won the silver medal of the 2016 Olympic Games in the all-around. Denis Ablyazin, David Belyavsky, Nikita Nagorny, Nikolay Kuksenkov and Ivan Stretovich in total, after six shells, they scored 271.453 points. In the vault Denis Ablyazin he also won "silver", and in exercises on the rings - "bronze". David Belyavsky took third place in the exercises on parallel bars.
.jpg)
On the same day, August 8, a Russian swimmer had a swim Yulia Efimova... Despite the fact that the athlete was allowed to compete only on the last day, and during her performance the audience "booed" the girl, Julia overcame the distance of 100 meters and came second. The swimmer won silver in the 200-meter breaststroke on 11 August.
.jpg)
Shooter Vladimir Maslennikov in shooting from an air rifle from 10 meters took third place. The 21-year-old athlete scored 184.2 points. On August 12, in shooting from a small-bore rifle "bronze" won and Kirill Grigorian. In rifle shooting from three positions, the silver medal was won Sergey Kamensky.
The Russians started with "gold" on August 9 as well. Judoka Khasan Khalmurzaev in the weight category up to 81 kg took first place. In the final, he defeated American Travis Stevens. “I could not lose to an American,” Khalmurzaev said at the end of his speech.
.jpg)
Aliya Mustafina, Daria Spiridonova, Maria Paseka, Seda Tutkhalyan and Angelina Melnikova won silver in artistic gymnastics competitions in team all-around. Aliya Mustafina brought "bronze" in competitions in individual all-around on August 11, and on August 14 won "gold" in exercises on uneven bars. She won the second place in the vault Maria Paseka.
.jpg)
Inna Deriglazova took first place in foil fencing. Our girls in swordsmanship Violetta Kolobova, Tatiana Logunova, Lyubov Shutova and Olga Kochneva won the "bronze".
.jpg)
In a time trial, covering a distance of 29.9 km in 44 minutes 31.97 seconds, Russian woman Olga Zabelinskaya won a silver medal. In the cycle track, silver medals were also won Daria Shmeleva and Anastasia Voinova. Denis Dmitriev in track cycling in sprint won a bronze medal.
.jpg)
19 year old Anton Chupikov at his first Games he won a bronze medal in the swimming competition at a distance of 200 meters. In sailing we got another bronze thanks to Evgeny Rylov... He covered 200 meters on his back in 1 minute 53.97 seconds.
.jpg)
12th of August Alexey Cheremesinov, Artur Akhmatkhuzin and Timur Safin brought the "gold", defeating the US and French national teams.
.jpg)
The next day, August 13, the women's fencing team repeated the guys' success and took first place. Saber fencers Ekaterina Dyachenko, Yana Egoryan and Sophia the Great defeated the national teams of Ukraine and the USA.
.jpg)
Doubles tennis player Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina won gold.
"Bronze" in windsurfing won Stefania Elfutina. The third place in the kayak competition also won Roman Anoshkin. Ilya Shtokalov- single canonist, received a bronze medal.
.jpg)
14 august Roman Vlasov won the gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling. Fighter David Chakvetadze also took first place. In the final, the Russian defeated an opponent from Ukraine with a score of 9: 2. A Sergey Semyonov won bronze in the weight category up to 130 kg.
Boxer Evgeny Tishchenko won gold in the weight category up to 91 kg. Vladimir Nikitin and Vitaly Dunaitsev took third place. On the final day of the Olympics Misha Aloyan also won silver. "Bronze" in boxing among women went to Anastasia Belyakova.
Nobody doubted the victory of our synchronized swimmers. Analysts predicted victory for them long before they entered the pool. Indeed, for the fifth time, Svetlana Romashina and Natalia Ischenko... The national synchronized swimming team of the country also won the "gold" of the Olympics, leaving no chances for their rivals. In the sum of two programs Vlada Chigireva, Natalia Ischenko, Svetlana Kolesnichenko, Alexandra Patskevich, Elena Prokofieva, Svetlana Romashina, Maria Shurochkina and Gelena Topilina showed a result of 196.1439 points.
On August 17, she won a silver medal in freestyle wrestling Valeria Koblova... "Silver" also brought to the national team's piggy bank Natalia Vorobyova in the weight category up to 69 kg. "Bronze" won Ekaterina Bukina in the weight category up to 75 kg.
.jpg)
In taekwondo, Russia also did not remain without medals. Alexey Denisenko from Rostov-on-Don brought a silver medal to the collection of medals in Russia.
The women's water polo team won bronze medals. Without suffering a single defeat, the Russian national handball team won gold.
Gold medal in modern pentathlon won Alexander Lesun, gaining 1479 points.
Russian freestyle wrestler Aniuar Geduev brought the "silver" to Russia. In the decisive battle, Geduev performed with a cut on his head, he received medical assistance several times. “This“ silver ”is the envy of many owners of“ gold ”, - later wrote in the media.
Rhythmic gymnastics was represented by Russia in the best possible way. The famous school of Irina Viner once again showed the whole world a master class. So, Margarita Mamun took first place in the Olympics, and Yana Kudryavtseva- the second. Gold was also won by the entire rhythmic gymnastics team.
August 20 Russian freestyle wrestler Abdulrashid Sadulayev won a gold medal in the weight category up to 86 kg.
.jpg)
Gold medal in freestyle wrestling went to Exiled to Ramonov... In the final, he met with the Olympic champion in London and left him no chance, defeating with a score of 11: 0. Thus, Soslan Ramonov became an extreme athlete at this Olympics, who brought "gold" to Russia.
As you know, the Russian team was not allowed to the Paralympics, but this did not prevent the domestic tricolor from flashing at the opening ceremony of the Games. Neighbors Belarusians helped, during the parade of athletes they carried not only their own flag, but also the Russian one.
However, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) did not appreciate this gesture and launched an investigation into the Belarusian delegation.
Press Association journalist Matt McGehan later tweeted that the identity of the athlete who carried the flag had been established and the tricolor had been confiscated.
“As I understand it, the member of the Belarus national team who carried the Russian flag [at the opening ceremony of the Paralympics] has been identified. The flag was confiscated. The IPC decides what to do in this situation, "
- wrote McGehan.
In Russia, the act of the Belarusians was appreciated. Irina Rodnina, a three-time Olympic champion in pair skating, now considers her neighbors "brothers", and the official representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maria Zakharova called the person who carried the flag a hero.
Later the name of the "hero" became known. It turned out to be not a Paralympic athlete, but the director of the Republican Center for Olympic Training in Athletics Andrei Fomochkin.
President of the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) Vladimir Lukin said that he would never forget the act of the Belarusians.
“I can only thank our Belarusian colleague, an athlete, whose name, unfortunately, I don’t know yet. At this difficult time, he remembered us, about justice, about the fact that politics should not interfere with sports competitions. Especially in the Paralympics, which have a special humane meaning.
It's great that the Belarusians remembered about their closest country, about Russia.
We will not forget this and will continue to pay with the same coin. I will find out whether this was an action by a committee of Belarus or an individual athlete, but in any case, I greet and thank our Belarusian colleagues. We are always friends with them, ”TASS quotes Lukin.
It should be reminded that the Belarusian delegation planned to carry the Russian flag at the opening ceremony from the very beginning.
“As the head of the Paralympic Committee of Belarus, I am not going to keep silent either here or in Brazil. I even instructed to take Belarusian and, unambiguously, Russian flags to the opening of the Games in Rio. I will definitely have them there, ”said the chairman of the Paralympic Committee of Belarus, Oleg Shepel.
However, the IPC forbade the team to demonstrate the domestic tricolor, citing the fact that Russia does not take part in the Paralympics, and, accordingly, there should be no flag.
Otherwise, the committee promised to consider such an act as a "political protest" and to impose serious sanctions on the Belarusians.
After that, Shepel softened the rhetoric, explaining that he was misunderstood. True, the functionary was still going to take the tricolor to the guest box.
“As for the Russian flag, my previous words were misunderstood or interpreted. Do not confuse sports with politics. The official delegation, which will enter the Marakana stadium, will carry the national flag of Belarus. And no other, "Shepel noted.
However, in the end, the Belarusians carried the Russian flag, which means that the entire delegation may face serious punishment, up to and including suspension from the Games, although this option looks unlikely. But Fomochkin, who took out the flag, can really leave Rio.
As for the Russian Paralympians, they will demonstrate their abilities at the "alternative games" in the Moscow region, which were also opened the day before. The ceremony took place at the Moscow Crocus City Hall.
The Russian Government has already promised to financially encourage domestic athletes.
“The government of the country has decided to reward our Paralympians in the same way as if you were competing at the Paralympic Games in Rio. If you show the results that correspond to the world level at which you are ready, - said the Minister of Sports Vitaly Mutko, referring to the participants of the "alternative games". -
I would like to say that we regret that it turns out that today we do not take part in a big sports event, a sports festival. But I am sure that these are temporary difficulties, the RCC, the entire world sports movement will very quickly do the work to return us to the big Paralympic family. "
Recall that Russia does not participate in the 2016 Paralympic Games due to the suspension of the Russian Paralympic Committee (RPC) based on the report of the WADA independent commission on state support for doping in the country.
You can get acquainted with other news, materials and statistics at Rio-2016, as well as in the groups of the sports department on social networks
Member of the Belarusian delegation, champion of the Spartakiad-1986 Andrey Fomochkin took out the Russian tricolor during the parade of athletes at the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. He did not give a damn about all the prohibitions and did as he saw fit, expressing support for the Russian national team removed from the Paralympics. Our country expressed gratitude to the courageous athlete, and the International Paralympic Committee threatened with sanctions.
Suspension is final and irrevocable
The decision to remove Russian athletes from the Paralympics was made on August 7, when the Olympic Games were already in full swing in Rio de Janeiro. Head of the IPC Philip Craven then he said that sport in Russia is completely mired in doping scandals, and the Paralympians are victims of the system.
This decision was also facilitated by the report of the independent expert WADA Richard McLaren who mentioned that the doping tests of our Paralympians were mysteriously disappearing.
In this situation, the IPC decided to remove the entire Russian national team from the Paralympics, despite the fact that in a similar situation the IOC did not dare to do the same, and our athletes competed at the Olympics. Attempts to obtain the right to participate in the Paralympic Games through the courts were unsuccessful - both the Court of Arbitration for Sport and the Swiss Federal Court rejected the claims. As a result, Russian Paralympians participate in competitions specially organized for them in the Moscow region with similar prize money.
Russian flag on "Marakana"
After it became clear that our Paralympic team would not go to Rio de Janeiro, several countries at once expressed their support for the Russian national team. The Azerbaijanis refused the licenses that the IPC offered them together with the suspended Russians, and the Belarusians expressed their intention to go to the opening ceremony with the Russian flag. A couple of days after these intentions began to take shape, Philip Craven forbade them to do so.
But the Russian tricolor appeared on Marakana. The whole world saw it - Belarusians expressed their support for the Russian national team. A member of the Belarusian delegation Andrei Fomochkin unfurled the Russian flag during the parade of athletes and carried it about a hundred meters, after which the representatives of the organizing committee took the flag away from him. The IPC stated that this action by Fomochkin has a political connotation and promised a tough response, and the head of the Paralympic Committee of Belarus Oleg Shepel said that "this gesture is a sign of solidarity with the Russians."
A real man
Andrei Fomochkin was born in Arzamas, but rather early moved to Belarus - then still a union republic within the USSR. He was involved in track and field athletics. At the Spartakiad of the USSR in 1986 in Tashkent, he won a gold medal in the relay race 4 x 400 m and won silver in the decathlon. In addition, he is the USSR record holder in the winter athletics all-around (in the halls).
After Belarus gained independence, Fomochkin held various positions in commercial and government organizations. He headed the directorate of national teams, before that he was assistant to the Minister of Sports and Tourism of Belarus, worked as a coach. Here you don't even need to find out why Fomochkin carried the Russian flag and whether there was an agreement about this within the team. The fact is, this is a real man's act. Not words - but a deed that everyone saw.
Flag Sanctions
What awaits Fomochkin and the entire national team of Belarus now? Most likely, there will be no sanctions against the team. Otherwise, it will lead to a loud international scandal. The already dismissal of the Russian Paralympic team caused a mixed reaction in the world of sports. It’s not about ordinary athletes, but the Paralympians. People who overcome difficulties on a daily basis.
As for Andrei Fomochkin, he may probably be asked to leave the Olympic Village and return to Belarus. In general, all this resembles some kind of cheap comedy, in which he even refused to participate. Thomas Bach... The IOC President announced that he did not intend to attend the Paralympic Games.
