Member's statement: Europe Triathlon Cup: Exclusion of Israeli Athletes
Member's statement by Mrs Julie Middleton on .
- MLA
- Mrs Julie Middleton
- Party at the time
- Democratic Unionist Party
- Date
- 7 September 2026
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Europe Triathlon Cup: Exclusion of Israeli Athletes
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5669581
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I express my profound disappointment and deep concern at the recent exclusion of Israeli athletes from the Europe Triathlon Cup in Londonderry. Sport, at its very core, is a universal language that possesses the unique power to bridge divides, transcend borders and bring people of diverse backgrounds together in the spirit of fair competition and mutual respect. The fundamental principle of international sport is that athletes meet on the starting line as equals. They compete under the same rules, and they are free from the heavy hand of geopolitics. We must absolutely keep politics out of sport. What is particularly disturbing about this situation is the awful, inflammatory language that has been directed at and used about these Israeli athletes. Sadly, we have seen groups and even public representatives openly expressing delight and relief at the exclusion of these competitors. Even more alarming, we saw public statements from the event organisers themselves, openly objecting to the participation of athletes representing Israel and welcoming the fact that they would not compete. Let us be absolutely clear: targeting individual athletes who travel to Northern Ireland simply to compete in their chosen discipline purely because of the country that they represent crosses a dangerous line. It is highly discriminatory, it is exclusionary, and it sets a deeply grim precedent. No athlete should ever be made to feel unsafe, demonised or unwelcome because of their nationality. Furthermore, there are serious questions regarding exactly how that decision was taken. We are told that the decision was enacted due to safety concerns and the potential for protest and disruption. Are we now setting a standard whereby the mere threat of disruption from protesters is enough to effectively ban a specific nationality from an international sporting event in Northern Ireland? Who ultimately made the call to capitulate to that pressure? What level of consultation took place with the PSNI on those threats? How is it acceptable that an event that was supported by public funding failed to uphold the most basic principles of non-discrimination? If an organiser cannot or will not protect the principle of equal participation, the very purpose of sport is lost. We must send a clear message from the Chamber that discrimination against any athlete is completely unacceptable. We urgently need transparency on how that deeply flawed decision was reached.
386 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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