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A VIP minibus, accompanied by two police cars, waited to take K. Cimanouskaya from the plane to the terminal, preparing her to reach the final destination of the trip, Poland, which granted the athlete a humanitarian visa.
Many journalists gathered to cover the arrival of K. Cimanouskaya.
The runner, who specializes in the 200-meter distance, criticized the Belarusian Athletics Federation on Sunday for trying to force the athlete to participate in a relay race. According to K. Cimanouskaja, after criticism, she was forcibly sent home.
Aliaksandr Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus with an iron fist since 1994, has cracked down on any display of disobedience following a wave of mass protests sparked by his disputed re-election in August last year. The Belarusian opposition and western countries consider the election rigged.
K. Cimanouskaya was one of more than 2,000. Belarusian sports figures who signed an open letter calling for new elections and the release of political prisoners.
Her husband has already fled to Ukraine, and the couple should meet in Poland, which is a harsh critic of the Lukashenko regime, which has taken in a number of Belarusian opponents persecuted by the Minsk regime.
“According to the information we have, he should go to Warsaw tonight,” a spokesman for the Austrian Foreign Ministry told AFP.
At the time, Poland later announced Wednesday that it had also granted Cimanouskaya’s husband, Arseny Zdanevich, a humanitarian visa so that he could meet his wife.
“Ms. Cichanouskaya’s husband has also just received a Polish humanitarian visa,” Polish government spokesman Peter Muller told reporters.
Initially it was thought that Cimanouskaya would fly directly from Tokyo to Warsaw on a Polish airline LOT, but at the last minute he changed his plans and flew to the Austrian capital.
Austrian media had previously speculated that Cimanouskaya could seek asylum in Austria, the home of his coach, Philip Unfried.
The Austrian authorities, which have close trade relations with Belarus, have previously been skeptical of this possibility.
However, on Wednesday, the Austrian Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying that “if Ms. Cimanouskaja wanted to apply for asylum in Austria, she could certainly count on our support. That decision depends on it. “
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