EXPLAINER: What is behind Belarus athlete's Olympics crisis?
FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, July 9, 2021, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, left, presents the national flag to the captain of Belarus National Olympic team Ivan Tikhon ahead of the Summer Olympics Games in Tokyo, Minsk, Belarus. Lukashenko, who has a keen interest in sports and served as the head of the Belarus National Olympic Committee for nearly a quarter-century before handing over the post to his older son in February, has sternly warned the country's Olympic athletes that they better show high performance. (Maxim Guchek/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, July 9, 2021, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, left, presents the national flag to the captain of Belarus National Olympic team Ivan Tikhon ahead of the Summer Olympics Games in Tokyo, Minsk, Belarus. Lukashenko, who has a keen interest in sports and served as the head of the Belarus National Olympic Committee for nearly a quarter-century before handing over the post to his older son in February, has sternly warned the country's Olympic athletes that they better show high performance. (Maxim Guchek/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT
FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, Feb. 26, 2021, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, left, speaks with his oldest son Viktor in Minsk, Belarus. Viktor Lukashenko, who advises his father on national security, was previously the national Olympic body's vice president under his father, whose disputed victory in state elections last August led to ongoing protests in the former Soviet republic. Lukashenko, who has a keen interest in sports and served as the head of the Belarus National Olympic Committee for nearly a quarter-century before handing over the post to his older son in February, has sternly warned the country's Olympic athletes that they better show high performance. (Andrei Stasevich/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, Feb. 26, 2021, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, left, speaks with his oldest son Viktor in Minsk, Belarus. Viktor Lukashenko, who advises his father on national security, was previously the national Olympic body's vice president under his father, whose disputed victory in state elections last August led to ongoing protests in the former Soviet republic. Lukashenko, who has a keen interest in sports and served as the head of the Belarus National Olympic Committee for nearly a quarter-century before handing over the post to his older son in February, has sternly warned the country's Olympic athletes that they better show high performance. (Andrei Stasevich/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT
FILE In this file photo taken on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020, Belarusian opposition supporters with old Belarusian national flags and a poster reading "Why haven't the killers been arrested yet?" rally in Minsk, Belarus. Tens of thousands of demonstrators have gathered in the capital of Belarus, beginning the fourth week of daily protests demanding that the country's authoritarian president resign. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo, File)

FILE In this file photo taken on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2020, Belarusian opposition supporters with old Belarusian national flags and a poster reading "Why haven't the killers been arrested yet?" rally in Minsk, Belarus. Tens of thousands of demonstrators have gathered in the capital of Belarus, beginning the fourth week of daily protests demanding that the country's authoritarian president resign. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:00 AM EDT
FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, July 30, 2021, Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, of Belarus, runs in action in the women's 100-meter race at the 2020 Summer Olympics. A feud between Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek, File)

FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, July 30, 2021, Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, of Belarus, runs in action in the women's 100-meter race at the 2020 Summer Olympics. A feud between Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:00 AM EDT
FILE - In this March 26, 2017, file photo, police detain journalist Raman Pratasevich, center, in Minsk, Belarus. Pratasevich has been part of the Belarus political opposition for over a decade. Even though he left Belarus in 2019 and was living in Lithuania, Pratasevich was arrested after the jetliner he was on was diverted to Minsk on Sunday, May 23, 2021, by Belarusian flight controllers. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - In this March 26, 2017, file photo, police detain journalist Raman Pratasevich, center, in Minsk, Belarus. Pratasevich has been part of the Belarus political opposition for over a decade. Even though he left Belarus in 2019 and was living in Lithuania, Pratasevich was arrested after the jetliner he was on was diverted to Minsk on Sunday, May 23, 2021, by Belarusian flight controllers. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:00 AM EDT
FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, Feb. 26, 2021, Viktor Lukashenko, an oldest son of the Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, attends the Belarusian Olympic Committee session in Minsk, Belarus. Viktor Lukashenko, who advises his father on national security, was previously the national Olympic body's vice president under his father, whose disputed victory in state elections last August led to ongoing protests in the former Soviet republic. Lukashenko, who has a keen interest in sports and served as the head of the Belarus National Olympic Committee for nearly a quarter-century before handing over the post to his older son in February, has sternly warned the country's Olympic athletes that they better show high performance. (Andrei Stasevich/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, Feb. 26, 2021, Viktor Lukashenko, an oldest son of the Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, attends the Belarusian Olympic Committee session in Minsk, Belarus. Viktor Lukashenko, who advises his father on national security, was previously the national Olympic body's vice president under his father, whose disputed victory in state elections last August led to ongoing protests in the former Soviet republic. Lukashenko, who has a keen interest in sports and served as the head of the Belarus National Olympic Committee for nearly a quarter-century before handing over the post to his older son in February, has sternly warned the country's Olympic athletes that they better show high performance. (Andrei Stasevich/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT
FILE In this Monday, Aug. 8, 2005 file photo, Vadim Devyatovsky of Belarus, who took silver, competes in the final of the Men's Hammer at the 10th World Athletics Championships in Helsinki, Finland. Many Belarusian athletes have faced reprisals after speaking out against the authorities and voicing their support for protests. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)

FILE In this Monday, Aug. 8, 2005 file photo, Vadim Devyatovsky of Belarus, who took silver, competes in the final of the Men's Hammer at the 10th World Athletics Championships in Helsinki, Finland. Many Belarusian athletes have faced reprisals after speaking out against the authorities and voicing their support for protests. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT
FILE In this file pool photo taken on Saturday, April 4, 2020, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko takes part in a hockey match during Republican amateur competitions in Minsk, Belarus. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (Andrei Pokumeiko/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE In this file pool photo taken on Saturday, April 4, 2020, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko takes part in a hockey match during Republican amateur competitions in Minsk, Belarus. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (Andrei Pokumeiko/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:00 AM EDT
FILE - In this Aug. 10, 2020, file photo, police in Minsk, Belarus, clash with a protester after the Aug. 9 presidential election – a vote that demonstrators denounced as fraudulent. Police used tear gas, flash grenades and beatings in a harsh crackdown. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - In this Aug. 10, 2020, file photo, police in Minsk, Belarus, clash with a protester after the Aug. 9 presidential election – a vote that demonstrators denounced as fraudulent. Police used tear gas, flash grenades and beatings in a harsh crackdown. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:00 AM EDT
FILE In this file photo taken on Monday, Jan. 11, 2021, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, left, greets International Ice Hockey Federation President Rene Fasel during their meeting in Minsk, Belarus. Lukashenko, who has a keen interest in sports and served as the head of the Belarus National Olympic Committee for nearly a quarter-century before handing over the post to his older son in February, has sternly warned the country's Olympic athletes that they better show high performance. (Nikolai Petrov/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE In this file photo taken on Monday, Jan. 11, 2021, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, left, greets International Ice Hockey Federation President Rene Fasel during their meeting in Minsk, Belarus. Lukashenko, who has a keen interest in sports and served as the head of the Belarus National Olympic Committee for nearly a quarter-century before handing over the post to his older son in February, has sternly warned the country's Olympic athletes that they better show high performance. (Nikolai Petrov/BelTA Pool Photo via AP, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT
FILE In this file photo taken from video, Belarus Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya speaks during a zoom interview with the Associated Press in Japan, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021. A feud between Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo/Daniel Kozin, File)

FILE In this file photo taken from video, Belarus Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya speaks during a zoom interview with the Associated Press in Japan, Tuesday, Aug. 3, 2021. A feud between Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo/Daniel Kozin, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT
FILE - In this Nov. 1, 2020, file photo, police block demonstrators during an opposition rally to protest results of the presidential election in Minsk, Belarus. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 1, 2020, file photo, police block demonstrators during an opposition rally to protest results of the presidential election in Minsk, Belarus. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT
FILE In this file photo taken on Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016, Belarus center Yelena Leuchanka gestures after a basket during the first half of a women's basketball game against Japan at the Youth Center at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Many Belarusian athletes have faced reprisals after speaking out against the authorities and voicing their support for protests. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

FILE In this file photo taken on Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016, Belarus center Yelena Leuchanka gestures after a basket during the first half of a women's basketball game against Japan at the Youth Center at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Many Belarusian athletes have faced reprisals after speaking out against the authorities and voicing their support for protests. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:00 AM EDT
FILE - In this Nov. 8, 2020, photo, detained demonstrators stand, after an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results, inside a police station in Minsk, Belarus. Human rights activists and prisoners' relatives in Belarus say that the authorities have kept jailed protest participants in particularly harsh conditions and marked them with yellow tags on their clothes. The ex-Soviet nation has been rocked by protests triggered by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko's reelection to a sixth term in an August vote widely seen as rigged. The authorities have responded with fierce repressions, arresting more than 35,000 and beating thousands. (via AP, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 8, 2020, photo, detained demonstrators stand, after an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results, inside a police station in Minsk, Belarus. Human rights activists and prisoners' relatives in Belarus say that the authorities have kept jailed protest participants in particularly harsh conditions and marked them with yellow tags on their clothes. The ex-Soviet nation has been rocked by protests triggered by authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko's reelection to a sixth term in an August vote widely seen as rigged. The authorities have responded with fierce repressions, arresting more than 35,000 and beating thousands. (via AP, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT
FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, July 30, 2021, Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, of Belarus, runs in the women's 100-meter run at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Japan. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)

FILE In this file photo taken on Friday, July 30, 2021, Krystsina Tsimanouskaya, of Belarus, runs in the women's 100-meter run at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Japan. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT
FILE - This Sunday, Aug. 23, 2020 file photo made from video provided by the State TV and Radio Company of Belarus, shows Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko armed with a Kalashnikov-type rifle near the Palace of Independence in Minsk, Belarus. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (State TV and Radio Company of Belarus via AP, File)

FILE - This Sunday, Aug. 23, 2020 file photo made from video provided by the State TV and Radio Company of Belarus, shows Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko armed with a Kalashnikov-type rifle near the Palace of Independence in Minsk, Belarus. A feud between Belarusian Olympic sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya and team officials that prompted her to seek refuge in Poland has again cast a spotlight on the repressive environment in the ex-Soviet nation, where authorities have unleashed a relentless crackdown on dissent. (State TV and Radio Company of Belarus via AP, File)

Aug. 04, 2021 02:01 AM EDT