JAKARTA - Minister of Youth and Sports (Menpora), Erick Thohir, is ready to face the appeal made by Israel after their gymnastics athletes are prohibited from entering Indonesia.
The Israeli Gymnastics Federation (IGF) officially filed an appeal to the Court of Arbitration Sports (CAS) after the Indonesian Government did not issue a visa for their athletes to participate in the 53rd World Artistic Gymnastics Championships 2025 event in Jakarta on 19-25 October.
Erick said that he was aware of the appeal plan carried out by the IGF to fight for their athletes to compete with other countries in Jakarta.
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"We are anticipating the lawsuit and of course there are separate rules, both at the CAS level and especially in Indonesia regarding this matter, so we will face the lawsuit with respect," said Erick.
The IGF in a previous statement confirmed that they had appealed to CAS. They called Indonesia's move to ban their athletes an unreasonable act.
In an official statement sent via electronic mail last weekend, the Israeli Gymnastics Federation said it did not accept the decision issued by the Indonesian side.
"Indonesia's decision is not only outrageous, but also very worrying for the justice of the world of sports," the Israeli Gymnastics Federation statement was quoted as saying by The Times of Israel.
The Indonesian government has decided to reject the entry visa of Israeli athletes as a form of condemnation of the attacks carried out in Gaza. So far, Indonesia also has no diplomatic relations with Israel.
The ban on Israeli athletes is also referred to as a form of response to objections from a number of parties, including the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government, as the host of the championship.
This is not the first time Indonesia has taken a firm stance on Israel's participation. Previously, Indonesia lost its host status at the 2023 U-20 World Cup after rejecting the Israeli team's participation.
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