The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) “strongly objects” to the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) recommendation that Russian and Belarusian athletes should not be allowed to compete in international sports events. “We have only one comment – we strongly object to them,” ROC president Stanislav Pozdnyakov said in a statement. “Today’s decision of our colleagues from the International Olympic Committee, in our opinion, contradicts both the regulatory documents of the IOC and the Charter, first of all, and the spirit of the Olympic movement, which should unite and not divide,” he added.