This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
Russia’s Olympic Committee (ROC) says a selection of music by 19th-century Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky will replace the Russian national anthem at this year’s Tokyo Olympic Games and the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.
The International Olympic Committee has approved a fragment from Tchaikovsky’s Concerto For Piano And Orchestra No. 1, the ROC said in a statement on April 22.
In December 2020, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) partially upheld a previous ruling by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) that barred Russia’s name, flag, and anthem from major sporting events for manipulating lab samples and doping test data.
The ban covers the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, which have been postponed for one year because of the global pandemic, the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to be held from July 23 to August 8.
Russia is also barred from hosting international events for two years.
