Israeli gymnasts barred from the World Championship: reasons for Indonesia's decision.

According to The Sun: Israeli gymnasts will not be able to participate in the World Artistic Gymnastics Championships, which begins next week, as Indonesia has barred them from entering the country.

The Indonesian government has not issued visas to the Israeli team due to military actions in Gaza.

Indonesia is the world's most populous Muslim-majority country and an active supporter of Palestinian independence.

This means that the reigning world champion in men's parallel bars Artem Dolgopyat will not be able to defend his title in Jakarta on Sunday.

The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) merely noted that it “took note” of Indonesia's decision without expressing any objections.

On Tuesday, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejected the requests of the Israeli Gymnastics Federation (IGF) for urgent intervention.

IGF filed two appeals with CAS seeking intervention to block the decision.

The first appeal demanded the cancellation of FIG's statement regarding “taking note”.

The second, filed together with six Israeli athletes who were to participate, demanded that FIG “take measures to ensure the participation of Israelis or, alternatively, postpone or cancel the championship”.

FIG, for its part, claims that Indonesia's decision to bar the Israeli team “exceeds their competence”.

Dolgopyat was among the six gymnasts who filed requests, alongside Eyal Indig, Ron Pyatov, Lihi Raz, Yali Shoshani, and Roni Shamai.

Both of IGF's requests were rejected, although the second appeal process “is still ongoing” and will not be considered until the competition begins this weekend.

IGF stated in July that it was assured that the delegation would be welcomed at the World Championship.

However, the planned participation of the Israeli team sparked protests in Indonesia amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

On Monday, 20 live Israeli hostages were returned to their families as part of a ceasefire agreement.

Indonesia also lost the right to host the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup after the governor of Bali, where the draw was to take place, refused to host Israel.

The country was expelled from the 1964 Olympic Games after it refused to grant visas to Israeli athletes for participation in the 1962 Asian Games.

In the World Championship, which will run until October 25, 86 countries were set to compete, including Israel.

This situation regarding the participation of the Israeli team on the world stage once again reflects the complex political circumstances that affect sports. Gymnasts from Israel, particularly Dolgopyat, had high hopes for the competition but ultimately found themselves victims of international politics. The lack of agreement between FIG and Indonesia, as well as the decision by CAS, has led to the championship proceeding without this strong competitive team.