Armenia’s government has voiced disapproval of Armenian cross-country skier Mikayel Mikayelyan after he covered the word “Azerbaijan” on his race bib during the Tour de Ski in Italy, an inscription tied to a sponsorship deal between the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) and Azerbaijan’s government. Education, culture and sports minister Zhanna Andreasyan said on January 7 that sport must remain about sport and that athletes should follow the rules of fair competition, while her deputy, Hasmik Avagyan, later demanded an explanation from the Armenian Ski Federation. Mikayelyan, 26, was fined by organizers after taping over the inscription, drawing widespread public support and the full backing of the Armenian Ski Federation, whose chairman Gagik Sargsyan says the penalty should be challenged and that FIS should not have compelled athletes to promote Azerbaijan in the first place.
Deputy Minister Hasmik Avagyan sent a letter to Armenian Ski Federation chairman Gagik Sargsyan requesting an “explanation” for Mikayelyan’s refusal to display the word “Azerbaijan” on his chest. Sargsyan responded that the athlete’s action is “more than clear” and “needs no explanation.”
Mikayelyan competed in the annual Tour de Ski event that took place from December 28 to January 4. Like other participants, he was issued a race bib bearing the word “Azerbaijan,” reflecting a sponsorship agreement signed last year between FIS and the Azerbaijani government. Mikayelyan covered the inscription with white tape and was fined by the organizers as a result.
“They said, ‘We understand you, but according to the FIS rules, all sponsors must be visible,’” Mikayelyan told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service last week.
“For me, my dignity, my homeland are more important… I cannot think that this is unrelated to politics and enter the competition without covering the name of a country that is aggressively disposed towards my homeland,” the 26-year-old athlete said.
Mikayelyan’s move drew significant support on social media and backing from the Armenian Ski Federation. Sargsyan said the federation is prepared to cover the fine, adding that many Armenians are also ready to do so.
Sargsyan said he plans to contest the financial penalty through an international sports arbitration body, or even the European Court of Human Rights. He argued that FIS should not have required athletes to promote Azerbaijan in the first place.
“There is no international sports federation in the world sponsored by a state agency,” Sargsyan said. “There is simply no such precedent because [athletes representing] that state would have an advantage over the others.”
Earlier this week, Azerbaijan’s government tourism agency, which signed a five-year sponsorship deal with FIS, submitted a formal complaint to the international federation. The agency said FIS must ensure that all skiers avoid “manifestations of ethnic hatred, racism and xenophobia.”
Critics of Armenia’s government have linked its reaction to the Tour de Ski incident to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s reluctance to anger Azerbaijan, describing it as part of a broader policy of appeasement toward Armenia’s arch-foe.
