The Iranian para-swimming team has confirmed it will not be attending the upcoming World Championships, as France has rejected the athletes’ visa requests.
The news was shared by the head coach of the team, who confirmed for the Tasnim News Agency that France did not issue visas to the athletes, as Iran is currently dealing with political uncertainties after the late President died in a helicopter crash, Schengen.News reports.
These two swimmers were supposed to compete in Berlin, but the embassy delayed, and the visas did not arrive on time. Next week’s World Championships in France are also out of reach because France didn’t issue visas either.
Izaidi also pointed out that these championships are important for the team to practise and test their abilities ahead of competitions.
Albania Denied Visas for Irani Athletes for U23 World Championships in 2023
This is not the first time that Iranian athletes are having issues with visas. In October 2023, Albania denied visas to Iran’s wrestling team for the U23 World Championships.
The United World Wrestling pointed out that this rejection had impacted the growing diplomatic challenges that athletes from this country often encounter. The United States also denied visas to Iran’s national volleyball team previously.
This can be related to the fact that high-profile athletes, such as the Iranian national team athletes have sought asylum in Australia and Norway.
Asylum Requests From Iranians to EU Up by 25% in 2023
According to the EU Agency for Asylum (EUAA), the number of asylum seekers from Iran has increased from 13,459 to 16,833 in 2023, showing a 25 per cent increase.
As per countries that received the most requests, Germany led the list, receiving 59 per cent of all requests for asylum filed by Iranian nationals in 2023. The total number of applications to Germany was 9,955. The Netherlands follows second with 1,220 applications, accounting for seven per cent of all applications.
Out of all applications submitted in 2023, the EU granted refugee status to 43 per cent of Iranian applicants. Another three per cent received subsidiary protection while 54 per cent were negative. Compared to 2022, the share of those being granted refugee status has increased slightly, from 39 to 42 per cent.
However, compared to 2017 figures when 51 per cent of requests were approved, Iranians are not the most likely to obtain refugee status.
