For almost two years, he has led the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) and during the WC in Planica, news meets him after he has given a speech in the VIP section. Most eyes are turned towards the Swedish billionaire, who afterwards sits back around a table, while he leads the conversation with five or six others who have been defined as “very important people”. Through a successful business career, the 61-year-old has built a network that few can match. Aksel Lund Svindal, Lindsey Vonn and Hermann Maier were among those who vouched for Eliasch to attack the challenges of skiing. – We have changed our own statutes more than has been done in perhaps 50 years. A number of changes have been made to coordinate our plans with the goals we have now set, says Eliasch to news with satisfaction. MEETING THE ALPINE WINNERS: Ragnhild Mowinckel (from left), IOC President Thomas Bach, Kajsa Vickhoff Lie and FIS President Johan Eliasch. Photo: Lise Åserud / NTB Controversial leadership Eliasch says he is satisfied with the steps that have been taken since he was elected in June 2021. They have included the paraathlete, new sports have been incorporated and improved climate accounting. But Eliasch has been and still is controversial. Former head of the FIS cross-country committee, Vegard Ulvang, sounded a warning and called for transparency about the internal discussions. news commentator Jan Petter Saltvedt claimed there was dissatisfaction with his alleged lack of respect for the organisation. In front of the media, he has been tight-lipped. But before he went on to Georgia to visit the WC in snowboarding, freestyle and freeskiing, he devoted a few minutes to news. Naturally, some of them were about Russian participation. It has been a year since Aleksandr Bolsjunov met the Norwegians on the ski track. Eliasch is clear which side of the debate he stands on: – I think it is important that every organization for all sports shows solidarity and supports the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in these difficult times. Because if sport is politicized for political reasons, it could be the end of sport as we know it, says the FIS president to news. Since the IOC wrote in a press release that the athletes wanted the Russians and Belarusians back in competition, the debate has raged in the national and international media. At home in Norway, it started with Astrid Uhrenholdt Jacobsen expressing that the demand for “non-discrimination on the basis of passports is unavoidable” in an IOC meeting. She faced opposition, but was supported by Martin Fourcade. Warns against political interference Two independent UN experts believe it is a violation of human rights to ban the athletes from Russia and Belarus. Law professor Trond Solvang is among those who believe it is a gross simplification of the situation. – The basic values of the IOC are based on the fact that sport should not be political, and should be for the athletes and for peace. These values are very important to defend. These are difficult times and of course an athlete cannot choose where he or she comes from, but at the same time what is happening now is very polarizing, says Eliasch. news knows that there have been major disagreements within the board about the topic. Norway has made it clear that they do not want Russian participation because of the war in Ukraine. Eliasch met Russia’s skiing president, Jelena Välbe, in person in Zurich in October. He says that they are in contact with both the Russian and Ukrainian federations. Furthermore, he emphasizes the importance of showing solidarity with war-torn Ukraine. When asked how to distinguish between sport and politics in Russia, he shares the argument with the IOC: – I think it is very important that we look at all sides of this issue, because sport is a human right. And we must believe in and defend human rights. It is in that context that we have to look at the sport linked to this conflict, says Eliasch. Silent about meeting IOC President Eliasch arrived in Planica after a successful Alpine World Cup in France, where he met IOC President Thomas Bach, among other things. – It was a private visit, so I have no comment on that, answers Eliasch, who strongly warns against political intervention in the autonomy of sport. Recently, representatives from more than 30 countries signed a letter to the IOC, demanding that they explain the concept of “neutral athletes”. Until there is a clear definition, they do not want to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in international sports. The USA, Japan, Canada and Norway were among the countries that signed the letter, at the initiative of Great Britain. Culture Minister Anette Trettebergstuen represented Norway at the meeting. She explains the background for the political interference as follows: MINISTER OF CULTURE AND SPORT: Anette Trettebergstuen. Photo: Ole Berg-Rusten / NTB – It is because the IOC is now toying with the idea of letting Russian athletes in again, which both the Norwegian sports movement and we, as ministers in many countries, believe is completely out of the question. It has been a year since the brutal war of aggression began and there is no possibility whatsoever to distinguish between politics and sport from a Russian perspective. It is part of the propaganda and it is not relevant at all to be released to the Russians again, says Trettebergstuen to news. . – FIS president Johan Eliasch believes that sport must show solidarity with the IOC. This could be the end of sport as we know it, he says. What is your answer to that? – I think that when it comes to such extreme cases as this, I think the IOC should listen to the national sports and look at what the values of the sport really are. I insist that the Russians cannot let it go when we know that sport and politics are much the same in Russia. Most of the Russian athletes who participated in the Olympics in Beijing in 2022 are part of the Russian armed forces. Those who excelled in the championship received rewards in the form of military promotions. Some were also honored during a commemoration of the annexation of Crimea in early March last year.
ttn-69
FIS president Johan Eliasch turns his back on the IOC – silent on the meeting with Bach – news Sport – Sports news, results and broadcasting schedule
