Tokyo 2020. Belarusian sprinter Chryscina Cimanouska received a humanitarian visa in Poland

Marcin Przydacz informed on Twitter that Chryscina Cimanouska is in direct contact with Polish diplomats in Tokyo and received a Polish humanitarian visa. He assured that Poland would do everything necessary to help her continue her sports career.

Earlier in an interview with TVN24, Przydacz said that the application for political asylum for Cimanouska would be considered as soon as it was received. As reported by TVN24 reporter Sylwia Piestrzyńska, the Belarusian Olympic athlete, after obtaining a humanitarian visa, will apply for international protection, as announced by the head of the Belarusian Solidarity Sports Fund.

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As Marcin Przydacz said earlier on Monday, “yesterday, the environment of the Belarusian opposition, but also Chryscina Cimanouska herself, asked the Polish government, the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for support in this difficult situation.” – As announced, Poland provides support to Belarusian citizens who want to leave Belarus for political reasons, or who do not want to return to Belarus. This offer is still valid. Ms Cimanouska took advantage of this support offer. At the moment, he is at the Polish embassy in Tokyo. The Polish consul spoke to her, taking her with protection and care. Today it is safe on the territory of our mission, said the deputy head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He added that “if he submits an application for international protection or political asylum, this application will naturally also be processed”.

As Przydacz said, the offer to Cimanouska also includes “the possibility of continuing her sports activities”. – Everything will depend, of course, on her own decision. We also provide logistic support on this way from Tokyo to Poland – said the deputy minister. He added that the Belarusian woman “will be welcomed in Poland”.

When asked when the athlete will reach Poland, he noted that “everything is happening quite dynamically, the situation is changing”. – As for the logistic details of the flight or the day of arrival in Poland, due to its safety and the delicacy of this matter, I will not provide such information – he explained. He also assured that as soon as Cimanouska appears in Poland, the government will inform the public about it. According to TVN24, the day of arrival in Warsaw is to be Wednesday.

“Thanks to the rapid actions of the Japanese and Polish authorities, Chryscin Cimanouska avoided humiliation and discredit for expressing her views,” wrote on Twitter American ambassador Julie Fisher, who did not take up her function at the US embassy in Belarus because the Belarusian authorities did not accredit her.

Earlier, the Reuters agency reported, citing a witness, that on Monday around 5 p.m. local time (10 a.m. in Poland), a 24-year-old athlete drove to the Polish embassy in Tokyo in an unmarked silver van. According to the Cimanouska agency, she greeted two officials in front of the Polish facility and then went inside.

Reuters also claims, referring to the Ministry of the Interior of Ukraine, that the sprinter’s husband – Arseni Żdanewicz – drove into Ukraine on Monday. In an interview with the Russian portal Sport Ekspress, Zhdanevich was to confirm that he is currently in Kiev and intends to join his wife soon. He did not provide any more details.

Earlier on Monday, Aleksander Opejkin from the Belarusian Sports Solidarity Foundation, which supports athletes imprisoned or harassed for their political views – quoted by the website of the Belarusian organization Karta’97 – reported that Cimanouska in Tokyo “applied for political asylum in Poland, so it is good the way “. “She’s fine,” he pointed out. As Opejkin added, quoted by the Karta’97 portal, the 24-year-old was afraid to return to Minsk. – They tried to remove her from the Olympics not for objective and real reasons, such as her health. It was a purely administrative order – he pointed out.

A member of the Belarusian community in Japan who had contact with Cimanouska all night from Sunday to Monday told Reuters that the 24-year-old had also filed for asylum in Japan. The Japanese government announced that the Belarusian woman is safe. “Japan is coordinating with the relevant parties and is taking the appropriate action,” said Cabinet spokesman Katsunobu Kato.

The Russian agency RIA Nowosti reports that the Belarusian embassy in Tokyo has asked the Japanese authorities for information about Cimanouska.

A few days ago, 24-year-old Belarusian sprinter Chryscina Cimanouska criticized her coaches for the fact that due to their negligence, three Belarusian runners were not allowed to participate in the Olympics, and that she herself was enrolled in the 4×400 m relay, although she runs 200 m.

On Sunday Cimanouska informed that her guardians were trying to force her to return to Belarus, and the order to remove her from the team and send her back to the country came from Minsk. Journalists present at the Tokyo airport on Sunday reported that Cimanouska did not board the scheduled flight to Istanbul, from where it was supposed to fly to Minsk. On Monday International Olympic Committee he said that the sprinter is “healthy and safe” and is still in the Japanese capital. She spent the night in a hotel near the airport. The IOC is investigating how the Belarusian arrived at the airport.

The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded to the situation of the runner on Sunday. Deputy Minister Marcin Przydacz wrote on Twitter that “Poland is ready to help Chryscin Cimanouska, a Belarusian athlete, whose Lukashenka regime ordered her to return to Minsk from the Olympic Games.” He said that the player was offered a humanitarian visa. “And he can continue his sports career in Poland, if he so chooses” – he added. The Czech Republic also offered help to the Belarusian athlete.