During the upcoming Winter Olympics, Latvian public media (LSM) will not cover the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus, said LSM Corporate Communications Director Raina Anna Lochmele.
She explained that this is provided for by the internal guiding principles developed by LSM. The content of LSM will not include information about the achievements and results of athletes from aggressor countries, nor will their individual performances be shown. During live broadcasts at such events, LSM will use alternative content, such as self-promotion or interviews with Latvian athletes.
In exceptional cases, when the format of the competition or the course of events does not allow for a complete separation from the coverage of these athletes, or if there is another editorially justified reason for their mention, LSM content creators will clearly identify Russian and Belarusian athletes as representatives of aggressor countries, noted Lochmele.
At the same time, she emphasized that the guiding principles have been developed with various possible competition scenarios in mind and may be refined if necessary.
"The main task of LSM is to comprehensively cover the Winter Olympics for the Latvian audience: with live broadcasts, timely news content, studio programs, analytical reviews, as well as a variety of original content on television, radio, and digital platforms," explained Lochmele.
It was previously reported that TV3 Group channels will also not inform their viewers about the participation of athletes from aggressor countries competing under a neutral status in the upcoming Winter Olympics, said Go3 sports program director Toms Circenis to the LETA agency.
It was also reported that in September last year, the Executive Committee of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided to allow Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo under a neutral flag.
The Latvian Olympic Committee (LOC) disagrees with the decisions of the IOC Executive Committee, considering any participation of athletes associated with aggressor countries in international competitions premature and inconsistent with the format and essence of the Olympic Games.
At the same time, to ensure the participation of Latvian athletes in the Olympic Games qualifying competitions, as well as in other international competitions, the LOC has developed recommendations for Latvian athletes and representatives of the Latvian delegation on how to interact with these athletes.
The Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo will take place from February 6 to 22.
