An Olympic athlete from Belarus has sought the protection of the Japanese government over fears that she may be arrested and jailed if she goes home. Belarusian sprinter, Kristina Timanovskaya, said her government has been attempting to force her to go home after she publicly criticized her coaches for registering her for the wrong event.
Timanovskaya said Monday that she has requested protection from the government as she is fearful for her safety if she goes home. Belarus, under strongman leader, Aleksander Lukashenko, has strict rules against anti-government criticism and dissent.
"I am afraid that in Belarus they might put me in jail. I am not afraid that I will be fired or kicked out of the national team, I am worried about my safety. And I think that at the moment it is not safe for me in Belarus," Timanovskaya said.
The Belarusian National Olympic Committee had attempted to forcibly bring Timanovskaya home. The committee - run by the President's son, Victor Lukashenko - said Sunday that it was pulling out Timanovskaya from the games due to her "unstable emotional and psychological state."
Timanovskaya denied the accusations and said she was in good physical and psychological health. She claimed that she was only removed from the Belarusian Olympic team because she spoke about the negligence of the coaches on social media.
Timanovskaya originally trained to compete in the 200-meter sprinting events at Olympic Games. She said she was told by her coach that she would instead be running in the 4x400 meter relay race because some of her team members were not able to qualify for the event.
"I'm outraged! After all, we came to the Olympic Games, and it is against all the rules to declare us for a distance event which we have never competed in our life. This is a complete disrespect for athletes," she said.
Timanovskaya sent a formal request for support to the International Olympic Committee. The IOC and the Tokyo Olympics organizers said they will be coordinating with Timanovskaya and the authorities to determine their next steps.
Tokyo Metropolitan Police department representative, Kazuya Isozaki, did not confirm whether Timanovskaya was already in their custody or if she has been granted asylum by the Japanese government.
