Should Laguta and Emil be kicked out of the GP Series?

[Grachan 7,362]

10 hours ago, OveFundinFan said:

Your still missing what is going on.

Not sure what you are saying here. Surely, if Poland ban him, they are merely supporting a ban that Russia has already apparently imposed on him for being against the war so how dos that send a message to Russia.

Or is it possible that Laguta has already decided to revoke his Russian citizenship to ride in Poland so the Russians are pre-empting that? If Laguta then rides in Poland they can say that, as he has gone against their ban by riding in a foreign league, they are expelling him from Russian and revoking his citizenship.

The reigning World Champion's career could be over here. If we can we should let the guy ride. Banning him now shows support for Russia's actions.

 

[Steve Shovlar 10,439]

If the Russians have banned him, then he should apply for Polish citizenship, as the Russians will stop him riding from herein. 
 

 

[Grachan 7,362]

6 minutes ago, Steve Shovlar said:

If the Russians have banned him, then he should apply for Polish citizenship, as the Russians will stop him riding from herein. 
 

I think he already has it. If I search it, I get a Speedway GP "test" page which states: "Artem Laguta’s manager Rafal Lewicki admits becoming a Polish citizen should make speedway life easier for the Russian racer. Rider No.222 recently became a duel national alongside fellow Monster Energy FIM Speedway of Nations winner Gleb Chugunov, with the Wroclaw rider stating..."

If I click on the link, however, the page itself does not load.

On Google, for Artem Laguta nationality, it says both Polish and Russian.

[chris4gillian 1,832]

41 minutes ago, Grachan said:

I think he already has it. If I search it, I get a Speedway GP "test" page which states: "Artem Laguta’s manager Rafal Lewicki admits becoming a Polish citizen should make speedway life easier for the Russian racer. Rider No.222 recently became a duel national alongside fellow Monster Energy FIM Speedway of Nations winner Gleb Chugunov, with the Wroclaw rider stating..."

If I click on the link, however, the page itself does not load.

On Google, for Artem Laguta nationality, it says both Polish and Russian.

Artem was born in Russia, therefore he's Russian by birth and that's the unfortunate part of it.  The Polish citizenship is purely to make his speedway life easier (as stated above). 

Has Emil also been banned from riding in Poland and Sweden etc.?  No mention of him being banned to the extent Artem has as of yet.

[JamesHarris 390]

Do any other riders have Russian ancestry? Russian spouses? Russian equipment? Drink Russian standard Vodka? Have they ever flown on a Russian airline or visited a Russian city? Have they ever had conversation with a Russian citizen?

If any of the above apply then they are guilty of association and must be banned from all competitions with immediate effect!!!  

[Humphrey Appleby 13,958]

1 hour ago, Grachan said:

Or is it possible that Laguta has already decided to revoke his Russian citizenship to ride in Poland so the Russians are pre-empting that? If Laguta then rides in Poland they can say that, as he has gone against their ban by riding in a foreign league, they are expelling him from Russian and revoking his citizenship.

The Russian constitution prohibits the revocation of Russian citizenship from anyone born in Russia, assuming that some lip service is still paid to the legalities there.

[Grachan 7,362]

23 minutes ago, chris4gillian said:

Artem was born in Russia, therefore he's Russian by birth and that's the unfortunate part of it.  The Polish citizenship is purely to make his speedway life easier (as stated above). 

Has Emil also been banned from riding in Poland and Sweden etc.?  No mention of him being banned to the extent Artem has as of yet.

If he has Polish citizenship then he is Polish regardless of why he decided to have it. By banning him now they will effectively be ending his Speedway career because he said something against Vladamir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. So who is that pandering to?

As I said before, this could be that the Russian authorities put out a statement like that because he has revoked his Russian citizenship. I guess we'll have to wait and see with that. If he has, though, I hope he is allowed to rise in the GP.

[Grachan 7,362]

Just now, Humphrey Appleby said:

The Russian constitution prohibits the revocation of Russian citizenship from anyone born in Russia, assuming that some lip service is still paid to the legalities there.

Ah, ok. That complicates things a little then!

[OveFundinFan 4,142]

Call him up for the Polish army, they may need new recruits shortly, that will test where his heart lies.

[arnieg 3,643]

2 hours ago, JamesHarris said:

Do any other riders have Russian ancestry? Russian spouses? Russian equipment? Drink Russian standard Vodka? Have they ever flown on a Russian airline or visited a Russian city? Have they ever had conversation with a Russian citizen?

If any of the above apply then they are guilty of association and must be banned from all competitions with immediate effect!!!  

Aleksandr Loktaev would be the obvious case to consider. Russian born but transferred his allegiance to Ukraine. (he made 1 GP appearance last year)

[Technik 491]

My research shows that both riders represented the Russian federation (MFR) in last seasons FIM events & were on the SGP site as MFR again for this season. This would indicate that they are Russian & hold a Russian approved FIM licence & therefore would require permission from MFR to race in another countries territory & as the FIM currently doe's not recognise the MFR who would the PZM apply to.

As was established earlier this week by Roy Humphrey (ACU President) when he announced that all Russians would be barred from any activity in all disciplines of motorcycle sport on ACU territory it may not be the individuals fault the this invasion is happening but it is not ours either.

[iris123 20,990]

Strange how the people up in arms about the Russians getting banned , have actually said nothing about the Russians banning the Russians. 

 

[OveFundinFan 4,142]

It has gone a bit quite about Emil, how does he stand in comparison to Artem?

[enotian 562]

Internal Russian dissent is exactly the desired outcome of the international ban.

First off I feel terribly sorry for the individuals and it would be much better if Artem and Emil were in the SGP. But this situation is much bigger than that and a stance had to be taken. Let's face it I doubt Artem would have earned a living from riding in Russia anyway, there doesn't seem to be many fixtures.  Happy to concede this point as I've not researched it.

To illustrate the point, if you imagine that Speedway was the biggest sport in Russia and Artem the most famous sportsperson. Firstly the international ban would have robbed the Russian public with the opportunity to see their favourite defend his title which would have been a disappointment and provoked some thought as to the reason for the ban. The Russian public might view if as unjust by the west and continue to support their regime. Then their own authorities also ban him robbing them of seeing him ride in their own country. Now you're asking questions again. Still the public might turn against Artem for his anti-Russian sentiment. At which point the international ban has been pointless. However, if the combination of denying participation in global events, withdrawal of global brand products and economic hardship result in dissention within the populace then there is a chance this invasion could end. There's bound to be some other mad man despot polishing his ice pick just waiting for the chink in Putin's armour. And pulling out of Ukraine might just be the way of getting the gig, Huzzaah!! One for fans of "The Great" there.

I know speedway isn't and this particular ban is ineffectual in reality but you can't go half arsed in these circumstances. There has to be a united message. The question of nationality is tricky. Particularly as the World becomes a smaller place. Is it where you were physically born, or where you grew up, or where your parents are from, or where you contribute economically/hold a passport? Just reading about Palace's Michael Olise who is English, French, Algerian and Nigerian at the same time. In the case of the sporting ban the only criteria that can be applied is the nation the individual represents.  Unfortunately for Artem and Emil that is Russia. You can argue all you like about them being Polish citizens or whatever but in a sporting sense they represent Russia and you can try to say they could represent Poland or not represent any country but it's a flimsy smokescreen which only serves to weaken the message.

Whilst this might mean the end of Laguta's speedway career, compared to the end of innocent Ukrainian and Russian lives, it's insignificant.

It's an impossible situation but a stance has to be taken to demonstrate to the Russian people that the actions of the regime that governs them are immoral and not acceptable. You can't do that if you're making exceptions and concessions because it's a bit unfair on some individuals who we generally like because they entertain us.

[chris4gillian 1,832]

22 hours ago, Grachan said:

If he has Polish citizenship then he is Polish regardless of why he decided to have it. By banning him now they will effectively be ending his Speedway career because he said something against Vladamir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. So who is that pandering to?

As I said before, this could be that the Russian authorities put out a statement like that because he has revoked his Russian citizenship. I guess we'll have to wait and see with that. If he has, though, I hope he is allowed to rise in the GP.

He was born in Russia and that makes him Russian  You cannot change your home of origin/birth just by becoming a citizen of another country.

The whole situation is hugely unfair on Artem and all the other Russian athletes and sports people, but the world has to be in unison on this issue.