On 30 July 2021, during the Games, she accused officials from the Belarus Olympic Committee of forcing her to compete in the 4 × 400 metres relay and entering her name for the race without her consent.

[8][9][10] On 2 August, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejected Tsimanouskaya's request to annul the decision of the NOC RB to stop her from participating at the Tokyo Olympics, stating that she was unable to prove her case.

[11][12] On 3 August, the CAS clarified that its judgement was based on the fact that Tsimanouskaya could not prove she would still attempt to compete at Tokyo while she was in the process of seeking asylum in other countries.

[13] On 30 July 2021, Tsimanouskaya recorded an Instagram video criticising officials from the Belarus Olympic Committee (NOC RB), saying that they had entered her in the 4 × 400 m relay race, a distance she had never contested, without her consent.

[25] President of the IOC Thomas Bach and the Japanese foreign ministry both gave statements on 6 August describing what happened to Tsimanouskaya as "deplorable" and "unjust".