IOC refuses to suspend Israel, but will offer scholarships to Palestinian athletes – Gamereactor UK
In the wake of the growing protests against Israel’s participation in sports competition, the International Olympic Committee remains silent about a possible suspension (like they did with Russia in 2023). However, the IOC has decided that they will offer a number of scholarships to Palestinian athletes, to help them prepare for upcoming international competitions.
Kirsty Coventry, IOC President, met with Palestinian Olympic Committee chief Jibril Rajoub, and announced a series of scholarships that would help about 50 Palestinian athletes. Usually, less than ten athletes from Palestine qualify for the Olympic Games. With this help, they would increase their chances of qualifying for the 2025 Asian Youth Games in Bahrain, the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games, the Aichi-Nagoya 2026 Asian Games and the 2028 LA Olympics.
"Like everyone interested in peace for the region, we follow the current diplomatic developments very closely and hope that they can soon lead to a pathway to peace" Coventry said in a statement (via Reuters).
This would come in addition to the "Palestinian Sports Revival Plan" IOC announced last year to help raise funds for rebuilding the sports facilities destroyed by Israeli missiles. But Israel won’t be sanctioned, as the IOC said that the Israeli Olympic Committee was not found in any way to warrant any consideration of a sanction.
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