Expert: Lukashenka Will Leave On Sunday

This day will go down in the history of Belarus.

Sunday, August 1, will certainly go down in the history of sports in Belarus (and not just sports).

Doctor of History Aliaksandr Frydman writes about it in his Telegram channel.

Maksim Nedasekau, a "model athlete" loyal to the regime, won a bronze medal at the Olympics, while his colleague Krystsina Tsimanouskaya managed to wriggle out of the clutches of the clueless sports officials and prevent her departure for Belarus.

Nedasekau's medal certainly pleased the Lukashenkas and their supporters, but will remain (despite all the propagandists' efforts) an insignificant event, which will be remembered in the future (if at all) only in the context of Tsimanouskaya's case. Nedasekau again discredited himself by publicly supporting the anti-Tsimanouskaya campaign.

The entire world's press is now writing about Tsimanouskaya, whereas the scandal is just starting: although the track and field athlete did not win any laurels in Tokyo, she instantly became one of the key figures at the Tokyo Olympics and the most famous Belarusian female athlete in the world. She has acquired a cult status in the eyes of the Western public.

Belarusian propagandists like to repeat that sport ought to stay out of politics. Yet today's events have once again demonstrated the absurdity of their statements. There is no such thing as sports outside of politics: the politics and the sport are much the same.

Lately, Aliaksandr Lukashenka has been making fatal mistakes on Sundays: such was the case on August 9, 2020, when the regime decided to draw Lukashenka 80% of the votes and then brutally suppress protests against election fraud; such was the case on May 23, 2021, when a Ryanair plane with Raman Pratasevich on board was grounded in Minsk, which cost Belarus new sanctions and international isolation; such is the case today, when out of revenge they decided to return to Belarus urgently disgraced Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, putting into question the future participation of the Belarusian delegation in the Olympics. I would not be surprised if Lukashenka's reign came to an end on Sunday.