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Tsimanouskaya case: why Ukraine featured in it
Summary
A retrospective on the Belarusian sprinter's refuge at the Polish embassy in Tokyo and the role of her husband's move to Ukraine.
What did it mean when a Belarusian athlete turned to a foreign embassy during the Tokyo Games? On 3 August 2021, that question was still fresh, after events of 2 August 2021 involving sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya.
According to reports from 2 August, she refused to board a flight to Belarus at Haneda Airport and asked Japanese police for protection. She then entered the Polish embassy in Tokyo. The Japanese government said it would take measures to protect her stay, and several European countries offered her asylum.
Ukraine's place in the story
The Ukrainian angle was her husband. Reports said he had left Belarus and entered Ukraine, which placed Kyiv's territory in the story as a place of safe passage for the family, even though the asylum offers came from other European countries.
The wider setting
The Tokyo Games were held from 23 July to 8 August 2021, after a postponement caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Later, Belarus, along with Russia, was barred from the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris because of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which made Tokyo the last Summer Games at which Belarus competed as Belarus.
In short, by 3 August 2021 the episode combined protection by Japan, offers of asylum from Europe and a Ukrainian refuge for her husband.
