60 Minutes — hot on the trail.
- Russian athletes are at a crossroads. Shall they compete at the Olympics with no flag, hymn, or their own uniform, or shall they not go to Korea?
The IOC finally disqualified not the individual Russian athletes but the Russian team. That means it disqualified all the symbols of the Russian state.
Tatyana Tarasova, Honored Coach of USSR: That's a kiss-off to our national sport. We'll try to overcome it. We survived worse things. Our athletes are allowed to compete at the Olympics under a neutral flag. They won't be just called "people in white". They will be Russian athletes under the IOC flag. I believe that's our best option in this situation.
Olga Zaytseva, two-time Olympic biathlon champion: I've never doped or participated in any programs, I've always fought against doping. I'm against doped athletes. All these allegations are lies. It's slander. It hurts me personally.
Yana Romanova, Olympic biathlon champion: It's outrageous that athletes are not allowed to compete at the Olympics. I'm still cherishing my memories of the Olympics. The memories of me earning a right to join the Olympic team. I won a medal, we celebrated it. And now they ruthlessly took it away. It's outrageous when the athletes get asked this question: "Will you go under a neutral flag?" They are torn apart, it's horrible.
- Much less important than these tears, but still: Russian sports officials are also banned from the Olympics including Deputy Prime Minister Vitaly Mutko who received a lifetime ban.
This Friday, the State Duma will discuss its response to the IOC. It won't change much, but still. The announcement was made today by Vyacheslav Volodin, speaker of the Lower House.
- The President's spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that the Kremlin wouldn't comment on the situation until it got all the documents from the IOC. Right now, he has added that we must put all the emotions aside and thoroughly analyze the decision of the IOC. Even though it's hard to suppress emotions.
- That's true. It all seems clear. Only one question remains. Shall we go or stay?
Yelena Välbe, president of Cross-Country Ski Association: We'd been discussing this topic for two weeks before yesterday's verdict. Many had expected it to be harsh. I think Peskov is right. We must adopt a cool-headed attitude to the issue. Of course we're sorry about the country, its flag, and hymn. We are really proud people, I'm such a person. Had it happened in Soviet times, I wouldn't have definitely taken part in it. We were brought up differently. The life is different now. And our kids…
Nikita Isayev: The country's weak.
- Why are you saying that?
- Am I wrong? The USSR would have gone to the Olympics. We didn't.
- Our kids, my skiers are practically the same age as my elder son. Let the lady speak. They've been doing sports for 20 years since they were 9 or 10. Their dream is to go to the Olympics. And now they're making their decision. If they are allowed to make their own decision and there would be no official one for the whole nation to boycott the Olympics or to go there anyway. At least those who get admitted there because getting there isn't easy. I would still think of them as heroes. Because they are going to a war and will defend our country in their own way.
- You mean the Olympics are practically a war?
- When there are the Olympics or the World Championship I always tell my athletes: "The war has begun; we either won or lost our first battle the first fight is over". And so on every day. We protect our Motherland.
- The girls are crying saying it's horrible. It's a horrible decision for an athlete whether they go or stay whether they carry our flag or a white one that tends to get thrown away after a defeat.
- My whole team was yesterday at a training camp in Davos. In the evening, they all gathered in front of a TV you've seen the photo. Everyone in it was shocked. They were shocked but afterward they texted me: Mrs. Välbe, we still must go to the Olympics to win and prove we are strong, clean, and honest.
- Dmitry Nosov, bronze medal at the Athens Olympics: I address all our viewers. Imagine a picture. I talked to a friend today. He takes his son to a hockey class. They are training the whole day. Since he was five, the boy has believed in the sacred, believed in his country, believed in the Olympic justice, the Olympic gold. He wants to bring a gold medal to his country. And he's been training for 20 years. Every day. The whole day. Many athletes train for dozens of hours. Just imagine it for a second. They are surrounded not just by their friends and relatives but by a huge team their partners the whole structure is dedicated to training those people. They are revered. Lives and souls are invested in them. Imagine these things for a second. And somebody dares to say: "Don't go to the Olympics." You know, the situation is hard. I believe every athlete has the right to make their own decision. And if they go to the Olympics that would be their own decision. By no means should we condemn them. If I were in this situation I can only speak for myself I would go there I would do everything possible to win the Olympics. And standing on the first place on the pedestal I would tear my shirt and pull out a Russian flag. That's what I would do. And I wouldn't care whether they withdraw my medal or not. That's what I would do. But it's up to every athlete to decide. It's their life. Because they've spent so much energy and worked so hard.
- Try to say anything now.
Nikita Isayev, leader of Novaya Rossiya movement: It's good there are no tears and he's not standing on the pedestal. Although we see the "we should go" campaign that's being unfolded. Dear patriots that claim we're at war that we're waging a cold or some other war you're occupying an odd position. Tell me, do the athletes that are now deciding whether they go or not differ from those athletes that boycotted the LA Olympics in 1984? Tell me, did the Soviet Union participate in the Olympics until 1952? We only went to Helsinki in 1952. We were at war then as well. Yelena Välbe says: "Had it been the USSR, we wouldn't have gone". What's the difference? We're claiming we were strong during the times of the USSR we could say anything or knock with a shoe at the UN Assembly everyone was afraid of our missiles we had a parity with the US. Who are we now? We're being walked all over and humiliated. And we want to accept their handouts saying it's all for our athletes. I understand what it takes to be an athlete. I definitely understand that it's their lifetime dream. But accepting this humiliation means going straight into a trap. Today, Mr. Bach that's been walking all over us said he'd send the information to FIFA about the doping in our football team. Our team might get banned from the FIFA World Cup. And what does Deputy Prime Minister Mutko respond? He says…
- Mr. Isayev, FIFA has said that the recent decision of the IOC has no impact on the FIFA World Cup. Let's not distort the facts. The FIFA President said that. Please, don't.
- I'd like to say that going to these Olympics won't just make us feel like outcasts but will lead us straight into the humiliation trap we've been driven into. A white flag means defeat. A white flag means humiliation. Russia's no weaker than the USSR. We call it patriotism, say we're rising from our knees. But right now we're walking straight into the trap we're being led into. We'll be isolated and mocked at. My friends, we're at war now. And this war must not be played by their rules. Create an alternative, create some Goodwill Games. There are countries that will support us. There are countries that want to support us. They understand it’s a humiliation.
- Your position is clear. We were asked to put the emotions aside so far. The documents that appeared yesterday are being translated into Russian. We'll wait for their official release in Russia.
