Stapled visas issue: 'Athletes should have free & unfettered access to sports competitions'

MUMBAI: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) on Tuesday invoked the “general principle” of its charter which called for the “free and unfettered” access to sports competitions for athletes regardless of their nationalities, as the governing body of the worldwide Olympic movement threw its weight behind the three Indian female wushu players from Arunachal Pradesh who were issued stapled visas by Chinese authorities and were denied participation at the recently-concluded Asian Games in Hangzhou.
Reacting for the first time to the controversy, the IOC informed TOI in a statement that it has taken up the matter with the stakeholders concerned and that the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) have had discussions with the organisers of the Hangzhou Games to avoid recurrence of such future situation.