Russian Olympic Committee president Stanislav Pozdnyakov has downplayed the chances of athletes from his country appearing at this year’s Asian Games, while officials in Hong Kong have publicly criticised the plan.

The Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) voted at its General Assembly in Bangkok on July 8 to allow up to 500 competitors from Russia and Belarus compete at Hangzhou 2022 to help them qualify for next year’s Olympic Games in Paris.

Athletes from the two countries were banned from competing at the European Games in Krakow and Małopolska and have been largely missing from international competition since Russia invaded Ukraine in February last year.

International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach is pushing for them to be given the opportunity to take part at Paris 2024 and the OCA has offered to help.

The IOC also made a recommendation for Russian and Belarussian athletes to participate in Asian qualifying events for the 2024 Olympics if European countries continue to place a ban on the respective Russian and Belarussian athletes.

The Asian Olympic qualifier will take place in April next year.

It’s worth noting that the Hangzhou Games are not a qualifying event for the 2024 Olympics.

If Russia and Belarus participate they will not be eligible for medals and compete as independent athletes under a neutral flag

“At the moment, the ROC has not received any invitations to participate in the Asian Games, and without this it makes no sense to consider and discuss any hypothetical options,” Pozdnyakov wrote on his Telegram channel.