Vladimir Putin has said that Russia will “glad to welcome” members for the BRICS Games next year. BRICS is a political alliance comprising of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
The Russian President made the announcement via video during the BRICS Summit. With Russia set to stage the Summit next year, the 70-year-old said he will it use it as an opportunity to stage the Games along with cultural exchanges with the bloc.
“Russia, to be sure, will continue to promote in every way the further development of sports contacts and youth exchanges.
“Specifically, the BRICS Games are scheduled for June 2024.
“We also will be glad to welcome teams from BRICS countries at the Games of the Future international tournament to be held in Kazan next year.
“These competitions are a unique combination of dynamic athletic disciplines with the most popular video games and technological devices.
“A good opportunity for contacts and friendly communication will present itself at the World Youth Festival in Sochi in March 2024.”
A tentative programme featuring 22 sports with competition due to be staged across 12 venues in Kazan is currently in the plan. Russia has previously stressed that the BRICS Games is not an alternative to the Olympics.
The International Olympic Committee has allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to return to international competition as neutrals, provided they do not support the war in Ukraine and are not affiliated with the military.
With the war continuing in Ukraine, their participation at the Paris 2024 Olympics is not confirmed yet.
Russia has also expressed interest in hosting the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Games. Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan are part of SCO.
The country hosted a Beijing 2022 Paralympics replacement event in Khanty-Mansiysk, that saw five countries attend.
Previously, the Friendship Games was hosted by the Soviet Union and eight of its allies in 1984 after the country boycotted the Los Angeles 1984 Olympics.
Source: Inside The Games
