Olympics as a Reflection of Global Turmoil and Conflicts

Throughout its history, the Olympic Games have tried to serve as a symbol of global truce; however, the facts tell a different story. Pierre de Coubertin, the founder of the modern Olympic Games, dreamed of complete independence of sports from political conflicts, but the International Olympic Committee (IOC) often found itself in the role of an arbitrator, imposing sanctions on entire countries. Over more than a century, a significant list of countries has been excluded from competitions for various reasons, ranging from military conflicts to doping scandals.

The first mass exclusion occurred after World War I: in 1920, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Turkey were not allowed to participate in Antwerp. Four years later, a similar situation occurred in Paris when the Germans were unable to compete in the Games. After World War II, in 1948, London also excluded representatives from Germany and Japan, turning sports into a tool for punishment for global aggression.

The longest isolation was the situation with the Republic of South Africa, which was excluded from the Olympic Games for almost thirty years from 1964 to 1992 due to the brutal apartheid policy. Only after the fall of this regime could South African athletes return to Olympic competitions. Subsequently, political unrest and conflicts raised doubts about the participation of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Yugoslavia, emphasizing that the Olympic Charter requires adherence to not only sports but also humanitarian norms.

In the new millennium, the focus shifted to internal problems within sports. Kuwait, for example, faced the consequences of government attempts to interfere in the affairs of its national Olympic committee, which in 2016 forced Kuwaiti athletes to compete under a neutral flag. Nevertheless, the most shocking has been the protracted crisis surrounding Russia. Beginning with doping scandals that deprived the country of its flag at the Games in Pyeongchang, Tokyo, and Beijing, the events of 2022 led to unprecedented tightening of measures. Currently, athletes from Russia and Belarus have effectively become "athletes without a homeland," allowed to compete only as individual participants and under strict selection criteria.

The history of these exclusions vividly demonstrates: despite the slogan "sport outside politics," the Olympic Games remain a mirror reflecting all conflicts, intrigues, and changes in human society.