Exactly two weeks are left before the start of the Olympic Games in Tokyo. Today, the President of the country handed over the national flag to our Olympic team.
In a few days, all of us will cheer for our athletes on TV and rejoice, seeing the Belarusian flag flying over the Olympic podiums! The victories of our athletes will be an answer to all those who are pressing on Belarus today. Alexander Lukashenko assured the athletes: you have the people behind you, who are waiting for our national flag to be hoisted in the sky in Tokyo!
These Olympic Games have become a part of history before they started. The main start of the quadrennium was displaced by the world pandemic for a year. But the forum kept last year's name, so don't be surprised when you hear about Tokyo 2020..
Quarantine measures will be strict: constant tests, GPS-tracking of movements, complete restriction of contacts. The games will be memorable not only due to the absence of foreign fans. The competitions will be held without spectators.
Canoeing is probably the sport which is more interesting to watch in front of the screen. By the way, the boats of our team are already in Tokyo. For Belarus, this is the most medal-intensive sport: 10 out of 78 medals of the Summer Games were won by the rowers. The men's team has been getting ready for this event for nine years. They were suspended from the Games in Rio without knowing why, they were suspended for doping. They apologized later, it was a mistake. The guys were really in a fighting mood.
The Belarusian team in Tokyo includes 109 athletes in 20 sports. Of course, not all of them are in the Palace today: some of them are on tournaments and training camps. Some teams are already leaving for Tokyo tomorrow. As for the climate, summer in the land of the rising sun is hot and humid.
Every sport has its own nuances. Alexander Lukashenko, as a fan, said that everyone was certainly looking forward to these games.
Alexander Lukashenko, President of the Republic of Belarus:
Your sports achievements are not just a personal triumph. Your success should be an answer to those people who first took everything they could from the country, and now wish you to fail, the answer to those states that are strangling or trying to strangle us with sanctions. I know in detail what you've been through. But you have passed. There is a major and decisive step left. There was provocation, bullying, psychological pressure, threats. All that happened. You held those blows like true athletes, showing patience, will, and courage. Now you have to defend the honor of our Belarus in Tokyo. You know that the rivals will be the strongest. Certain difficulties will be created by medical restrictions and intensified control by various agencies. Even pressure with political overtones may occur. The slogan "Sport is not politics" is long forgotten.
This is true. The Olympics 80 was remembered for the harassment of the Soviet Union by the West. But in the 21st century the Olympic principles are increasingly violated. Sports events are transformed into political ones. For example, instead of the Russian national anthem at the Games, Tchaikovsky's first concerto will be played. The leadership of the Belarusian NOC is under sanctions. Our advisers almost incited to ban our flag. All this is nothing else but pressure and arbitrariness on the part of biased political forces.












