The key facts
- Referee Alexander Maniraki was detained by police, interrogated and had his Schengen visa annulled, and was ordered to leave Poland within eight days
- The violation cited was holding a tourist visa instead of a sports visa
- Earlier, Polish authorities also detained a underage Russian karate athlete and his father; they initially faced deportation but were then allowed to attend the tournament as spectators
Referee detained and stripped of visa
Russian sports referee Alexander Maniraki was expelled from Poland, without being allowed to take part in the youth karate world championship. He spoke about this in an interview with RT. According to him, he had obtained a Schengen visa in advance, as he was supposed to work at the tournament in Bielsko-Biała. Before the start of the competition, he spent several days in the country, after which police demanded his documents and took him for questioning without explaining the reasons.
The visa type was cited as the reason
After the check, police declared it a violation that Maniraki held a tourist visa instead of a sports one. It was annulled, and the man was given eight days to leave the country. He also said that he had registered in advance for referee professional development courses and had almost completed them. According to him, what happened shocked his foreign colleagues.
Maniraki on the detention
The referee said he does not understand what he is guilty of, since he officially entered on a Schengen visa and posed no danger. According to his account, he was taken to the police station in handcuffs, interrogated 'like a vicious repeat offender,' and was fully stripped during a search. 'What did I do? I entered officially on a Schengen visa,' Gazeta.Ru quotes him as saying.
Other incidents with Russians at the tournament
The publication also recalls that Polish law enforcement officers earlier detained an underage Russian karate athlete and his father, who had come to the same championship in Bielsko-Biała. They had obtained a tourist visa to Hungary and reached Poland by land transport. Police charged them with illegal border crossing: under Polish law, Russians cannot enter the country without an invitation or family ties. They initially faced deportation, but were then allowed to attend the championship as spectators. In addition, Poland had earlier expelled Russians and Belarusians for attempting to take part in the karate world championship.