As the conflict in the Ukraine continues with Russia sending in a 40 mile convoy of military vehicles to the capital city of Kyiv. Vladimir Putin moves forward with his assault on Ukraine.
In response to these atrocities, the world’s government have been imposing more and more sanctions on Russia in order to put an end to the illegal invasion. So too have worldwide sports governing bodies.
The first governing body to ban Russian athletes and teams was the FA. There have also been talks of the International Olympic Committee following suit shortly for the winter paralympics due to start this Friday 4th March. Now all eyes are on the FIA to do something similar in Formula 1 and the wider motorsport world
It was announced late on Monday night that the FIA were calling an emergency meeting.
The conclusion of that meeting states….
From the FIA statement – Competitions organized on the territory of Russia and Belarus:
-No international/ zone competition to take place in Russia and Belarus, until further notice
-No flag/symbol or anthem of Russia/Belarus to be used in international/ zone competitions, until
further notice
This affects one driver in F1 and several others across the wider motorsport world. Nikita Mazepin will be able to be continue at HAAS, the details whether Haas choose to retain Mazepin now rely on the sponsorship troubles with Uralkali being a Russian company.However team principle of Haas , Guenther Steiner, has made it clear that Pietro Fittipaldi would be ready to step in should there be any issues with Mazepin or his ability to take part in the F1 season.
It is unclear yet how the decision will affect sponsors such as Uralkali but the indication is that in order to display political neutrality Haas may still be forced to drop them as a sponsor , which still puts Mazepin and his Haas seat in question . Especially since Team Principle Guenther Steiner has openly stated the Pietro Fittipaldi is ready to fulfill his reserve role if Nikita was unable to compete for any reason.
Daniil Kvyat has been vocal about his thoughts on the possible ban on him and fellow Russians competing in sport.
“I really hope for a peaceful solution to this situation in Ukraine, and that we can all live in peace,
“Hopefully all parties can find a solution by sitting together and through a respected dialogue. It horrifies me to see two brotherhood nations in a conflict.
“I don’t want military actions and wars to influence the future of humanity. I want my daughter and all children to enjoy this beautiful world.
“I would also like to highlight and address all sports federations across the world, including IOC, that sport should remain outside politics, and disallowing Russian athletes and teams from participating in world competitions is an unfair solution and goes against what sport teaches us in principle: the unity and peace.
Daniil Kvyat on Russian conflict with Ukraine and a possible ban on Russian competitors in sports around the world.
“Who else if not us sports people will help to glue nations together in the upcoming times.”
While its easy to agree with the sentiment from Kvyatt, we have to remember that this is exactly what the sanctions are meant to do. They are being imposed, so that the Russian people themselves put pressure on their leader to reverse his evil decisions.
These sports stars are not responsible of course, but neither are the innocent people of the Ukraine, being killed each and every day of this conflict. If it means a player, a driver or any other competitor in any sport doesn’t get to compete at an international level because of what their leader is doing, I would say they are getting off lightly in comparison to the women, children and men being killed.
We will keep you updated with the driver changes if and when they happen. Keep your eyes on our page for when HAAS release their own response to the FIA announcement.