The FIA, motorsport's governing body, lifted its ban on Russian competitors in August, following a similar move by the International Olympic Committee. Ukraine's Minister for Youth and Sport Matvii Bidnyi said the decision was premature, arguing that the conditions justifying the original ban have not changed.
"The reasons why Russia was banned from international sports competition have not disappeared," Bidnyi said. "Nothing changes and it became even worse." He pointed to continued Russian military strikes on Ukraine, including a drone attack on Kyiv's central rail station on Wednesday, as evidence of the ongoing conflict.
Bidnyi said other sports organizations had taken a different approach, citing World Athletics as an example of a federation that maintained restrictions on Russian participation. He described the FIA's decision as part of a broader pattern of sports bodies moving to lift sanctions. "When any federation lifts the ban and makes steps towards the aggressor, the terrorist state, it's always really, really sad," he said.
The Ukrainian government released figures on the war's impact on sport: 775 Ukrainian athletes and coaches have been killed since Russia's full-scale invasion began, including three from the Ukrainian Automobile Federation. More than 925 sports facilities have been destroyed, according to the government.
Bidnyi characterized elite sport in Russia as "deeply connected with the military and state propaganda system," describing it as "one of the biggest whitewashing mechanisms." The Russian Athletics Federation has filed a claim with the Court of Arbitration for Sport to challenge sanctions imposed by World Athletics, which still maintains restrictions on Russian participation.
The FIA said in a statement last week that it maintains its ban on organizing events in Russia and Belarus, and reserves the right to update its position in the future. The decision to allow Russian drivers to compete followed a vote by the FIA's world motorsport council on August 3.
