The short track star could compete for the USA: the comment of the blue swimming legend
“I read that Arianna Fontana would like to compete for the USA: the only advice I can give her is that she would make a huge mistake. The flag is what you feel like, it’s not the one you choose in a moment of difficulty. And It’s also right that an athlete of her prominence has reasonable help from her federation: but she mustn’t let go of the flag.” The blue swimming champion Federica Pellegrini says it to Adnkronos, speaking on the clash between Arianna Fontana and Federghiaccio.
“What comes out in the papers is just the tip of the iceberg, as usual, I say it from personal experience: especially at the beginning of my career, I too had problems with my federation and I know it’s just the tip of the iceberg. ‘iceberg. Everything else is so technical… we only read it in the newspapers, in my opinion we don’t have the complete picture on requests or on what both parties want, so I can’t answer if it’s a more technical or more personal question. I don’t know if Arianna’s requests are actually too much or if instead there is an insurmountable wall on the other side”.
As a member of the IOC, Pellegrini expresses himself on the hypothesis of a Ukrainian boycott of the Paris 2024 Games in the event of the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes. “I don’t know whether it is realistic or not that the Ukrainians do not participate, however the IOC is at an important crossroads: whether to readmit Russians and Belarusians who have not expressed themselves in favor of the war or whether to continue like this. Surely a decision will displease someone anyway but Thomas Bach is ready for all the consequences that will come”
But it is also “logical that, from the point of view exclusively of athletes, continuing not to allow athletes who have not exposed themselves in favor of the war, which is being waged by governments and not by them, from now on would be difficult to explain We too are waiting for a decision, and in any case there is always a war going on”, added the former Italian swimming champion.
Source-www.adnkronos.com