LAUSANNE, December 5, 2023 - This is the letter from the Ukrainian Sports Press Association condemning the ban on a Ukrainian journalist at the ongoing World Women's Handball Championship.

Dear President,

Hope this mail finds you well. I take this opportunity to express my respect to you.

At the same time, the reason for my appeal to you is not pleasant. The Ukrainian Sports Press Association is seriously concerned about the fact that the Ukrainian journalist, a long-time member of USPA and AIPS Igor Grachov was forbidden by the World Championship organizing committee to enter the hotel where the players and coaches of the national team of Ukraine live and is actually forbidden to approach them. According to our information, such an appeal came from the Handball Federation of Ukraine whose leadership does not like Igor Grachov's publications. However, the warned journalist was not shown an official appeal from the Handball Federation of Ukraine.

We would like to emphasize that Mr. Grachov has been covering the matches of the national team of Ukraine since 2008 without missing a single match of the national team of Ukraine since then. In his articles Igor professionally analyzes the game and the performance of the players, the decisions of the coaches. As is independent journalism, Grachov adheres to a critical view of coverage of events, however, after analyzing Igor's article, the USPA can confirm that this analysis is effective on the basis of objectivity, which we can without exaggeration describe as 100 percent objective.

I think it will be superfluous to remind you that the value of journalism for a democratic society lies precisely in the independent and objective assessment of reality. So the question arises: does any federation have the right to give or take away permission for accredited journalists to communicate with players and coaches of the national team during the final tournament of the World Championship, for which the women's national team of Ukraine qualified for the first time in 14 years? For us the answer is obvious: officials cannot prevent a journalist from fulfilling his professional duties. Igor Grachov's interest in communication with coaches and players is purely professional and concerns the team's performance at the World Championship, he knows most of the Ukrainian players personally, as he has been covering the national team's matches for 15 years and was once the team's press secretary.

We would like to emphasize the information that Igor Grachov received from the representative of the WC`s Organizing committee that he is not allowed to enter the reception of the hotel where the coaches and players of the national team live because otherwise his accreditation will be canceled, which caused great stress and shock to our colleague. For two days, he is actually psychologically depressed by this serious warning, it is psychologically difficult for him to continue his work, in fact, he must “gather strength” in order to work on the Ukraine-Kazakhstan match. 

Considering all the above Ukrainian Sports Press Association appeals to you to support our member and colleague Igor Grachov and provide him with all the opportunities for journalistic work. It is clear that there is a mix zone for official communication at the World Cup, but you also know that the contact base of journalists is not limited to communication in the mix zone: very often journalists record more voluminous interviews in the hotel where the team lives (in the lobby for example) - communication with players and coaches also takes place there. Of course, this happens with the prior agreement of the representatives of the teams and the players themselves. If there is such a harsh warning, which is frankly unclear and unreported, the journalist is under a lot of pressure, so in fact any contact he has with a team representative, even casually, can lead to the withdrawal of accreditation.

At the same time, such a warning which, as we assume may have been reported to the representatives of the Organizing committee leaves a very serious mark on the journalist's reputation, which can be reflected in his future career.

Summarizing all of the above we ask you to lift the ban on Igor Grachov's communication with representatives of the national team of Ukraine supporting in such way the journalist's independent position.

A copy of this letter is also being sent to AIPS President Gianni Merlo and AIPS Europe President Charles Camenzuli.

And also please find the attached latter on the official blank of USPA. 

I am at your service and happy to answer any questions you may have

Best regards,

Oleksandr Hlyvynskyi,
Ukrainian Sports Press Association Presient,
AIPS Europe Executive Committee Member
05.12.2023, Kyiv, Ukraine