KILLAKIK WARKS: Protect sport from politics

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33671, 22 October 1974, Page 18

KILLAKIK WARKS: Protect sport from politics

(N.2 PA.-Reuter — Copyright) VIENNA. Lord Killanin, president of the International Olympic Committee, has warned that action must be taken to protect sport from political exploitation.

Speaking at the open-: ing of the 1.0.C.’s seventy-fifth session in the Vienna Town Hall. I Lord Killanin said that > problems of Olympic elegibility or commercialisation were of minor ' importance compared [with the “recent dan[gerous and destructive element” of policital in-j terference. “It is not possible to! divorce sport and politics, but it must be possible to protect sport from political exploitation.” he said. “Recently there have been cases of the use of athletes for political purposes, where they have been prevented from competing against another athlete—especially in contact sports—because their administrators do not agree with the national or political l attitudes of the government > of the country from which their opponents emanate. “This is not sport.” he said. Lord Killanin said he was pleased to learn that the international federations which i govern individual sports | : agreed strongly with the 1.0. C. on this. He did not cite cases, but ] 1.0. C. sources said that meetings with the federations ,

and national Olympic committees were agreed in deploring political aspects of the Asia Games in Teheran last month.