Paralympic Games: Malaysia Loses Swimming Tournament Organization Due To Its Prohibition Of Israeli Athletes

The International Paralympic Committee has banned Malaysia from hosting the 2019 World Swimming Championships after Kuala Lumpur rejected the participation of Israeli athletes.

The tournament, to be hosted by Malaysia, is the pre-qualifying phase for the Special Olympics for Japan in 2020.

The committee said it would look for another venue to host the tournament.

"All world championships should be open to all athletes and countries able to compete safely and without discrimination," said committee chairman Andrew Parsons at the end of a meeting. of the board of directors in London.

"When a country hosts an athlete from a given country for political reasons, we have no choice but to seek a new host."

Malaysia, which has no diplomatic relations with Israel, announced this month that it would prevent Israeli athletes from participating in the tournament due to Israel's ill-treatment of Palestinians.

Israel condemned this decision as "shameful" and said the decision was the result of "extreme anti-Semitism" reflected in the positions of Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad.

Around 600 swimmers from 60 countries will participate in the tournament.