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Shooting

India suspended from hosting future sporting events after Pakistan shooters denied visa

India suspended from hosting future sporting events after Pakistan shooters denied visa
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Published: 22 Feb 2019 4:10 AM GMT
Suspense gripped the ISSF Shooting World Cup in Delhi yesterday as it was half expected that all Olympic quotas would be scrapped from the ongoing event and distributed among other World Cups scheduled throughout the year. Incidentally, that was what the ISSF President seemed to imply when he attended to the media at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range last night. However, the President of the National Rifle Association refrained from agreeing to the tone of finality and suggested itself that talks were still on to prevent the worst case scenario. Late night, however, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) put out a statement clarifying its stance and stating that only two quota places would be scrapped from the World Cup - the two available in 25m Rapid Fire Pistol - as that was the only event featuring shooters from Pakistan.

Below is the statement put out by the IOC:

The IOC was informed on 18 February that the Indian government authorities failed to grant an entry visa to the Pakistani delegation comprising two athletes and one official who were meant to participate in the ISSF World Cup. This is a qualification competition for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 in which direct quotas are earned by the respective National Olympic Committees (NOCs). The two Pakistani athletes were due to compete in the men’s 25m rapid fire pistol event, starting Saturday 23 February, in which two quota places are available for the Games. The IOC restricted the withdrawal of recognition as an Olympic qualification event to the 25m rapid fire pistol competition in which the two Pakistani athletes were supposed to participate. This happened in the interest of the other 500 athletes from 61 countries participating in the other events who are already in India for their competition. Since becoming aware of the issue, and in spite of intense last-minute joint efforts by the IOC, the ISSF and the Indian NOC, and discussions with the Indian government authorities, no solution has been found to allow the Pakistani delegation to enter India in time to compete. This situation goes against the Fundamental Principles of the Olympic Charter, in particular the principles of non-discrimination, as well as the IOC’s and the Olympic Movement’s position, reiterated on many occasions over the past few years, that equal treatment must be guaranteed for all participating athletes and sporting delegations at international sports events, without any form of discrimination or political interference from the host country. As a result, the IOC Executive Board also decided to suspend all discussions with the Indian NOC and government regarding the potential applications for hosting future sports and Olympic-related events in India, until clear written guarantees are obtained from the Indian government to ensure the entry of all participants in such events in full compliance with the rules of the Olympic Charter – and to recommend that the IFs neither award to nor hold sports events in India until the above-mentioned guarantees are obtained. The ISSF was asked to make a proposal on how the two available Olympic quota places will now be otherwise reassigned.
This means that 14 Olympic quota spots have been retained in the tournament as opposed to the original 16. India's 25m Rapid Fire Pistol team consists of Arpit Goel, Adarsh Singh - current national champion and teen prodigy Anish Bhanwala. This may seem like a team with a realistic chance of winning at least one Olympic quota but no country is eligible for that anymore - at least at this World Cup.
Also Read: ISSF issues warning to India after visas denied to Pakistan shooters
India's denial of visas to shooters of Pakistan was in direct violation of Rule 44 in the Olympic Charter which says that it is the duty of National Olympic Committees to investigate the validity of their entries and ensure that no one is discriminated for "racial, religious or political reasons." Another major takeaway from the IOC's statement is that
all discussions with the Indian Olympic Association for hosting Olympic events in the country have now been suspended
"until clear written guarantees are obtained from the Indian government to ensure the entry of all participants in such events in full compliance with the rules of the Olympic Charter – and to recommend that the IFs neither award to nor hold sports events in India until the above-mentioned guarantees are obtained." Remember, India were in the process of launching a serious bid to host the 2032 Olympic Games which has now suffered a setback. It remains to be seen how the two quota places will be distributed over World Cups in 2019. As of now, the ISSF has been asked to submit a proposal for the same.
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