IOC Ends Neutral Vetting for Russian Athletes but Keeps Flag and Anthem Ban in Place

The International Olympic Committee advised Olympic sports bodies on Tuesday to end a three-year program that vetted Russian athletes for neutral status ahead of qualifying events for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The IOC executive board provisionally lifted its suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee, which had been in place since October 2023.

It eased entry requirements to its own events for Russian athletes and teams.

The terms of the suspension no longer applied after the Russian Olympic body incorporated regional sports councils from occupied regions of Ukraine, the IOC said. Two months earlier the committee had advised that athletes from Belarus should be allowed to compete with their full national identity.

Just 32 athletes from Russia and Belarus competed at the 2024 Paris Olympics as approved neutrals and combined to win five medals.

The Russian team had more than 300 athletes at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and won 71 medals. The IOC has not approved letting Russian athletes and teams compete with their flag and anthem. That decision will come at an appropriate time, it said.

Russian athletes must give multiple doping controls and be part of a recognized testing program to address lack of confidence in the global sporting community. The IOC said it will continue to not organize IOC events in Russia or invite Russian government or state officials to its events. It stands in solidarity with the Olympic community of Ukraine and will continue to support it.

The next Olympic competition is the 2026 Youth Summer Games in Dakar, Senegal, opening October 31.