By Karolos Grohmann
MILAN, Jan 31 (Reuters) - While Italians took to the streets of Milan on Saturday to demonstrate against the presence of U.S. ICE agents in their country, athletes will have to stick
to a tight set of rules if they want to express personal views during the Winter Olympics.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement personnel will help protect American delegations at the Milano Cortina Games when they open next week, and their planned presence has caused a political uproar in Italy.
ARE ATHLETES FREE TO EXPRESS THEMSELVES AT THE OLYMPICS?
Athletes can express their views during the Winter Games but there are a number of restrictions set by the International Olympic Committee designed to keep the extravaganza and its athletes focused on the sporting competitions and away from controversial political issues.
Rule 50.2 of the Olympic Charter states: "No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas."
WHY DOES RULE 50.2 EXIST?
The IOC says the focus during the Games should only be on the sporting achievement and the competitions. Other issues would only detract from what was happening on the field of play, while also making the co-existence of athletes from more than 200 nations more difficult. It is a fundamental principle of the IOC that the Olympic Games remain politically neutral.
WHERE CAN ATHLETES EXPRESS THEIR VIEWS?
Athletes can raise issues that are of interest or concern to them at any of the Games press conferences, mixed zones, team meetings, interviews or on social media.
They can also do it on the field of play prior to their competition as long as it does not violate the Olympic charter on discrimination. Participants are expected to respect their fellow athletes and the Olympic values.
WHAT CAN ATHLETES SAY DURING THE OLYMPICS?
Athletes can raise political or social issues close to their hearts during the Olympics but they cannot do so within the specified Games venues and stadiums, within the fields of play and on the medal podiums or inside the Olympic village, which houses the majority of athletes during the Games.
The same goes for the Games' opening and closing ceremonies. Athletes also cannot display any political messages, including signs, arm-bands and flags that do not correspond to participating nations in the Games. Hand gestures or symbolic kneeling are also banned.
HAVE THERE BEEN CASES OF PAST VIOLATIONS OF THE RULE?
There have been a number of incidents over the years where athletes protested on the field of play or on the medals podium.
The most famous case dates back to the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City when U.S. sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos raised black-gloved fists during the 200 metres medal ceremony to protest racial injustice in the U.S.
That led to their expulsion from the Games, although Smith kept his gold medal and Carlos his bronze.
More recently, at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics, Afghan breakdancer Manizha Talash, a member of the refugee Olympic team, was disqualified after wearing a cape with the slogan "Free Afghan Women" during a pre-qualifying competition.
However, there have also been cases where athletes and teams escaped punishment when their action was not deemed political.
Australia's women's soccer team unfurled a flag of the first peoples of Australia at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 but, while not one of the recognised flags of participating nations at the Games, the team were not sanctioned.
Two Chinese cycling medallists who wore badges featuring the head of their country's former leader Mao Zedong on the Tokyo Olympics podium escaped with a warning.
WHAT SANCTIONS COULD ATHLETES FACE?
Those violating the restrictions could face sanctions that include, but are not limited to, the stripping of an athlete's Olympic accreditation and their removal from the Games.
Other disciplinary actions include lifetime exclusion from the Games, sanctions from the respective sports federations or their National Olympic Committees and even exclusions from future competitions.
Any breach of Rule 50.2 will be evaluated by the respective NOC, the international sports federation involved and the IOC. Disciplinary action is taken on a case-by-case basis.
(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann; Editing by Ken Ferris)
