IOC says Indonesia has failed to meet requested guarantees after denying visas to Israeli gymnasts, violating its policy
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The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has aired its ongoing disagreement with the Indonesian government after Israeli gymnasts were prevented from entering the country for the World Championships in October.
The IOC confirmed to News Digital that Indonesia has not accepted any of the assurances requested by the committee following the incident.
“The IOC held meetings with World Gymnastics and the Indonesian NOC to discuss the events that occurred in October. So far, the IOC has not received the requested guarantees from the government,” reads an IOC statement.
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Silver medalist Team Israel celebrates on the podium during the medal ceremony for the rhythmic gymnastics group all-around final at the Paris Olympic Games on August 10, 2024. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
News Digital has reached out to the Indonesian Embassy in the US for comment.
The IOC previously condemned the country for denying visas to Israeli athletes and declared it a violation of the international charter. All talk of Indonesia hosting a future Olympic Games ended and the IOC advised world organizers not to schedule any major events in the country.
“These actions deprive athletes of their right to compete peacefully and prevent the Olympic movement from showing the power of sport,” the IOC the executive board said in a statement in October. “The IOC’s principled position is very clear: all eligible athletes, teams and sports officials must be able to participate in international sporting competitions and events without any discrimination by the host country, in accordance with the Olympic Charter and the fundamental principles of non-discrimination, autonomy and political neutrality that govern the Olympic Movement.”
The Indonesian government cited security concerns for its decision to deny visas to the Israel team, warning of potential threats within its country to the safety of Israeli athletes and risking the safety of others.
However, Team Israel claimed that its own country’s security details determined it was safe to enter the country and cleared its athletes to travel there.
“We received clearance from the Israeli security authorities to participate in the World Championships subject to the necessary security protocols in place. On our part, all preparations were complete: registration process, entry visas to Indonesia and confirmation from the Israeli security authorities,” the Israel Gymnastics Federation (IGF) previously told News Digital.
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Team Israel competes during the Paris Olympics on August 10, 2024. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
Israeli male gymnast Eyal Indig previously recalled the days leading up to his visa denial in an interview with News Digital.
“The formal reason given by the Indonesian government was that our participation would endanger ourselves and the other national delegations,” Indig said. “For us, it was very strange… That same security did a scan a week before our flight, in Indonesia, they were in Indonesia, and they cleared everything in terms of security. So we had full clearance from the Israeli security team, and you can believe me, they wouldn’t clear anything that wasn’t safe. And our federation kept telling us it was safe.”
Indig later called Indonesia’s decision “a blatant incident of discrimination on the basis of nationality.”
Israeli gymnast Lihie Raz told News Digital: “We were disappointed and frustrated because, for us, sport is a place free of politics.”
Indonesian Sports Minister Erick Thohir defended his country’s decision in a statement issued the last week of October.
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Lihie Raz of Team Israel trains on the vault during a gymnastics training session ahead of the Paris Olympics on July 25, 2024. (Tom Weller/VOIGT/Getty Images)
“We adhere to the principle of maintaining security, public order and public interest when organizing every international event,” Thohir said.
Previously, Indonesia was stripped of its right to host the U-20 World Cup when the governor of Bali refused to host the Israel team in a match.
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Jackson Thompson is a sports reporter for News Digital covering critical political and cultural issues in sports, with an investigative lens. Jackson’s reporting has been cited in federal government actions related to Title IX enforcement and in mainstream media outlets such as The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The News and ESPN.com.