Agency :
Sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, who was removed from the Tokyo Olympics by the Belarusian team after she criticised her coaches, is auctioning a medal from the 2019 European Games to support athletes who say they have been targeted by authorities.
Belarusian team officials took the 24-year-old to Tokyo’s Haneda airport against her wishes on Aug 1, a day before she had been set to run the 200m. She refused to board the flight home and has since sought refuge in Poland, fearing for her safety if she returned to Belarus.
Tsimanouskaya told Reuters the reason she had been removed from the team was her public criticism of “the negligence of our coaches.”
