International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach said athletes from countries at war with each other have competed side-by-side at almost every edition of the Games, in a message to mark the International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (IDSDP).

This year's IDSDP today coincides with the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and its impact on the Olympic Movement.

The IOC Executive Board recommended last week that individual Russian and Belarusian athletes should be allowed to return to competition as neutrals, if they are not openly in support of the invasion of Ukraine or affiliated to the military.

"Sport brings people together in peaceful competition," said Bach.

"Like few other things, sport has the power to foster peace and understanding with our fellow human beings.

"At the Olympic Games, the athletes set aside all the differences that divide the world.

They compete fiercely against each other, while living peacefully together under one roof in the Olympic Village.

This makes the Olympic Games such a powerful symbol of peace.

Due to the fact that there are unfortunately far too many wars, armed conflicts and crises in this world, we have seen in almost all editions of the Games athletes compete with each other — as a symbol of peace — despite the fact that their nations are at war or in conflict.

Sport is the low-cost, high-impact tool to support all countries — big or small, rich or poor — to build together a more peaceful, healthier, more equal and more sustainable world for everyone — 365 days a year.

Individual sports have been ruling on whether to adopt the IOC recommendation on athletes from Russia and Belarus.

The IOC had previously called for an outright ban when Vladimir Putin launched his special military operation (the wording has been chnaged in accordance with the Russian law)  in Ukraine in February 2022, a stance Ukraine believes should be kept into place.

However, Bach has argued that there are 70 other armed conflicts in the world without people calling for a ban.