Activists: Belarus sprinter seeking visa to travel to Poland

An official from a Belarusian activist group says an Olympic sprinter is seeking a Polish visa after alleging that officials tried to force her home from Japan

Vadim Krivosheyev of the Belarusian Sport Solidarity Foundation said that Krystsina Tsimanouskaya is at the Polish embassy in Tokyo on Monday. He said the visa she is seeking would allow her to request political asylum in Poland.

Krivosheyev said the foundation has bought her a ticket to Warsaw from Tokyo for Aug. 4.

Tsimanouskaya was due to run in the Olympic 200-meter heats Monday. She criticized Belarus team officials on her Instagram account and then said they tried to force her to leave Japan.