As the countdown to the Paris Olympics has begun, Russia has invited more than 70 countries to participate in the BRICS Games.
Before you know it, the Olympic torch was lit at the site of ancient Olympia in Greece in mid-April, and is currently being relayed until the cauldron is lit at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Paris on July 26. For France, this year's Olympics are really extraordinary, because the last time the Olympics were held in Paris was in 1924, and exactly 100 years have passed since the world situation has changed dramatically. For the Macron authorities, whether or not they can make the Olympics lively and prosperous will have a great impact on the reputation of the Paris authorities, and France is now clearly working hard. It's just that what makes the Paris authorities a little uncomfortable is that before the Paris Olympics, the Russian side launched a round of sports events.
From June 11 to 23 this year, the BRICS sports competitions will be held in Kazan and Moscow, and Russia has previously invited many countries to participate, and it is expected that about 5,000 athletes from more than 70 countries will participate in the BRICS Games, competing for medals in 389 events. Considering that there is only a little more than a month between the BRICS Games and the Paris Olympics, some people may think that Russia is deliberately embarrassing France by distracting the scale of the Olympics. In fact, this misunderstands the Russian side, the Olympic events should not be affected by geopolitics, and there is no indication that Russia has the ambition to replace the Olympic Games. Russian Sports Minister Matechin has made it clear that Russia will not set a task to replace the Olympic Games and should not regard Russia as "a threat to the Olympics", and he also stressed that Russia has the right to go its own way. The implication is that the BRICS Games are not for the Olympics, and it is Russia's freedom to hold such events.
It is worth mentioning that it is difficult to find out why Russia is embarrassed by France, but the evidence that France and the Western bloc are embarrassed by Russia is clear. Since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the Western bloc has launched unprecedented sanctions against Russia, using almost all the measures that can be used, and the scope of sanctions is amazing. Even the iconic "Z" symbol of the Russian army has been banned by some European countries, and needless to say, everyone knows that Russia will inevitably be treated discriminatorily at the Paris Olympics. In fact, the IOC has long imposed restrictions on Russia and Belarus, not allowing athletes from both countries to represent their countries, or even to participate in the traditional parade at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, unless the athletes of the two countries participate in a "neutral capacity", so that they only have the opportunity to "experience the event", such as standing by the river to watch.
It has to be said that due to the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, Russia and Belarus are destined to suffer unfair treatment at this Paris Olympics. However, the Russian side has no intention of embarrassing the Olympic Games, and the president of the Russian Olympic Committee has already stated that although the IOC has imposed restrictions on Russian athletes, Russia will not boycott the Paris Olympics. It can be seen that the West has mixed political factors into sports activities, but Moscow has not retaliated, which is worthy of recognition. However, the Macron authorities may feel that restricting Russia and Belarus from participating in the Olympics is not enough, and when there is little reason to blame Russia, Macron stubbornly holds back some accusations against Russia.
Earlier this month, Macron said that Russia would aim "with malicious intent " at the Paris Olympics this summer, including in terms of information, which he was "convinced of". We can only say that the Paris authorities are typical of "nonsense", accusing Russia of "ill will" towards the Olympics without evidence, which can only demonstrate their stubborn hostility towards Russia. In this regard, the head of the Department of International Information Security of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Lyukmanov, said very simply, he called on Macron to prove his claims with evidence. And Macron, so far, has not come up with evidence to respond, which is enough to explain the problem.