Venezuela complains to France over deported skier

Venezuela complained to France on Thursday because French police deported a Venezuelan skier after allegedly making fun of him because they didn’t believe skiing existed in his country.

Adrian Solano, 22, was trying to change planes in Paris on the way to a competition in Finland but police deported him because they didn’t believe he was a cross-country skier, he told AFP.

Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez called the incident “absolutely unacceptable” in a message on Twitter on Thursday.

“Following instructions from President Nicolas Maduro, we will make a strong protest to the French government for this affront to a Venezuelan sportsman,” she wrote.

Solano alleged French police discriminated against him by refusing to let him board his onward flight despite his papers being in order.

“When I got to Paris on January 19, I explained that I was on my way to Sweden to train. They did not believe that I ski in Venezuela,” he told AFP.

“I told them that we train on wheels. I only had 28 euros with me and the police accused me of trying to immigrate because things were going badly in my country,” he said.

“They discriminated against me because of my dress, my face or appearance.”

Solano’s trainer Cesar Baena told AFP separately: “The police laughed at him. They said skiing didn’t exist in Venezuela.”

Solano finally made it on Tuesday to the Nordic World Ski Championships start on Tuesday in Lahti, Finland, having missed a month of on-snow training due to the deportation.

He pulled out of the 10-kilometer race after suffering various falls.