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Sochi organisers have back-pedalled on comments made by its head official concerning the rights of Olympic athletes to freely express themselves at news conferences during the games.
Dmitry Chernyshenko appeared to contradict IOC President Thomas Bach when he said on Wednesday that he didn’t think athletes were allowed to speak about non-sporting issues at official Olympic news conferences.
But they back-pedalled on Thursday.
“The Sochi 2014 Organising Committee would like to clarify comments attributed to Dmitry Chernyshenko yesterday concerning athletes being able to express themselves during press conferences,” the committee said in a statement.
“Sochi 2014 are fully aligned with the position of the International Olympic Committee.”
“Mr Chernyshenko simply meant that athletes are free to express themselves at a press conference – but of course they cannot use a press conference to make a demonstration or protest – similarly, they cannot use any Olympic venue to demonstrate.”
Athletes are forbidden from making political demonstrations or gestures on the medal stand and at other venues by the Olympic Charter.
But there has been some concern that athletes in Sochi may try to protest against the Russian law banning gay “propaganda” among minors.
The law, signed by President Vladimir Putin in June, has provoked widespread international outrage from critics who believe the legislation discriminates against gays.
Putin, however, has promised that athletes and spectators in Sochi will not face any discrimination based on sexual orientation.
On Monday in a conference call with reporters, Bach said athletes are free to speak out on any political issues at news conferences at the games.
A few days later, again in a con