The Israeli Olympic Committee has demanded to be allowed to attend and compete in the 2023 World Beach Games.
The request comes after Indonesian authorities decided that Israeli athletes would not be allowed to participate.
The Minister of Youth and Sports of the Republic of Indonesia, Dito Ariotedjo, had previously said that Israel was not included in the 69 countries participating in the Chef de Mission (CdM) Meeting at the 2nd ANOC World Beach Games 2023.
“It’s all safe. There’s no problem, the Olympic committee released the participating countries on 27th April and I didn’t see Israel’s name on the list. So there’s no polemic, there’s clearly no objection,” said the Minister.
These comments made Israel angry. The nation is now demanding its rights from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) so that they can continue to participate in the event which is due to be held in Bali.
“After many conversations with the chairman of the International Olympic Committee in recent months, a letter was sent to the President and CEO of ANOC clarifying that Israeli athletes will participate in ANOC only if given the same conditions as those of other countries,” the Israeli Olympic Committee said, as reported by Ynet News.
“It should be noted that the IOC is in constant contact with us on this matter, and we are confident that they will uphold the equality and right of the State of Israel to compete in any competition around the world, as it has done throughout the year,” they said.
Previously, the 2023 U-20 World Cup in Indonesia was cancelled due to the rejection of the Israeli national football team. This event was finally held in Argentina.
The Governor of Bali, Wayan Koster, still insists on banning Israel from appearing at the 2023 World Beach Games. He said the decision is based on the Constitution.
“My stance remains consistent in rejecting Israel’s presence at the World Beach Games in Bali in 2023,” Koster said in a written statement.