France captain Antoine Brizard criticizes FIVB decision to reinstate Russian national teams

If you wish to publish an Italian translation of this article, any of our other articles, or any part of them, please cite the original source. Plagiarism is illegal!

France national team captain and setter Antoine Brizard has strongly criticized the International Volleyball Federation’s (FIVB) decision to lift sanctions and allow Russian national teams to return to international competition.

Speaking to L’Équipe, he said the move, made in line with the International Olympic Committee’s recommendations, is both controversial and inconsistent.

“I find the FIVB’s decision, taken in accordance with the IOC’s recommendations, highly controversial. I can understand why Russian athletes are allowed to compete individually and without their national flag. However, I don’t understand why, for example, the Russian national team should return to the Volleyball Nations League next year or be allowed to compete at the World Championship in Poland in an attempt to qualify for the Olympic Games. In my view, this is inconsistent because nothing has changed.”

Earlier this month, the FIVB officially announced the reinstatement of Russian athletes and national teams to international competitions.

As a result, Russian men’s and women’s volleyball teams will once again be eligible to compete in FIVB events, World Championships, and other official international tournaments. In addition, both national teams will be restored to the FIVB World Ranking with the same number of ranking points they held when their ranking was frozen in 2022.

__________________

👀|QUICK LINKS
• All International news 🗞️
• Multimedia
• Facebook
• Instagram

__________________