The iF3 was saddened to learn of the withdrawal of team Lithuania from the iF3 World Championships after the first day of competition. We firmly believe that sport should remain apolitical and open to all.
The iF3 National Federations voted in June of 2023 to follow the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommendations on the return of Russian athletes to international competitions. As such, athletes with a Russian passport were allowed to return to competition as Independent Neutral Athletes (AIN) with certain restrictions in accordance with IOC recommendations. These restrictions included not having any use of the Russian flags or national symbols present while competing.
We want to be clear that our Independent Neutral Athletes from Russia have abided by these restrictions on their end. They entered the competition as neutrals, marched under a neutral flag in the Opening Ceremony, and do not have any Russian symbols on their uniforms.
However, the name Russia was incorrectly placed on athlete name cards and for a period of time in the beginning of day 1, the announcing team was referring to these athletes as “Russian athletes.” These oversights were the fault of the iF3. While the restrictions were regularly discussed and agreed upon with the local organizing committee, there were details that we missed in execution. As soon as the iF3 learned of the issues, we worked with the local organizing team and the affected federations to address them as quickly as possible, while understanding that adjustments made after the fact could not fully make up for our mistake.
The same time these mistakes were discovered, the iF3 was made aware of a Lithuanian athlete wearing a t-shirt that was deemed to be in violation of the sportsmanship clause of the iF3 rulebook. The athlete was asked to change their t-shirt or remove themselves from the premises as the iF3 requires athletes to display integrity, sportsmanship, and respect for fellow competitors, officials, and organizers at all times.
The iF3 deeply regrets the oversights the contributed to the withdrawal of the Lithuanian team. The iF3 takes full responsibility for our failure to clearly uphold the apolitical nature of the event and is committed to ensuring this will not occur in the future.
We look forward to seeing the Lithuanian athletes back on the floor in 2025 as we head to their home country for what we know will be an exceptional World Championship.
