The ban on Russian and Belarussian competitors taking part in international motorsport events was imposed in February 2022, after Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine.
It was lifted on 3 August this year in a decision by the FIA’s world motorsport council. This followed the International Olympic Association, with which the FIA is affiliated, lifting its own ban.
Bidnyi pointed out that other sports organisations had not followed this route, including World Athletics.
“When any federation lifts the ban and makes steps towards the aggressor, the terrorist state, it’s always really, really sad,” he said.
“It’s a massive disappointment for everyone in Ukraine. And we think it undermines the collective pressure that the international community has been building against the aggressor.
“Unfortunately, there are a lot of international sports organisations trying to lift bans to release pressure from the aggressor. We can observe it in such a federation as judo, weightlifting, and then a lot of others.
“But we have strong partners and strong principle international organisations – for example, biathlon or athletics – who understand the responsibility of the international sports community for international order and justice.”
The Russian Athletics Federation has filed a claim with the Court of Arbitration for Sport to challenge the sanctions imposed by World Athletics.
Bidnyi said: “In Russia, elite sport is deeply connected with the military and state propaganda system. It’s one of the biggest whitewashing mechanisms. This is why we call it sportswashing.”
The Ukraine government says that the war “has had a devastating impact on Ukrainian sport as a whole – since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion: 775 Ukrainian athletes and coaches have been killed by Russia”, including three competitors in the Ukrainian Automobile Federation.
It says Russia “has made sport facilities their targets to continue killing – more than 925 sports facilities have been destroyed”.
The FIA was contacted for comment. Last week, it issued a statement regarding the decision to lift the ban on Russian competitors.
A spokesperson said: “The FIA has updated the requirements for Russian and Belarusian drivers, national teams, competitors and officials following a vote by the world motorsport council. This follows an announcement by the IOC on 7th July and similar updates issued by other international sporting federations.
“The FIA maintains its ban on organising events and competitions in Russia and Belarus. The FIA continues to monitor the situation closely in Ukraine and reserves the right to update its position in the future.”
