The International Olympic Committee has approved a small group of Russian and Belarusian figure skaters to compete as neutral athletes at the 2026 Winter Games, the organization said Thursday.
Russian skaters Pyotr Gumennik and Adelia Petrosyan, along with Belarusian skater Viktoria Safonova, were invited to take part in the Games after passing background checks confirming they have no ties to the military and do not publicly support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The athletes must formally accept the invitations before they can be registered for the Games, which will be held in February in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo.
Under IOC rules, neutral athletes may not join the opening ceremony parade because they are not considered part of any national delegation. Their results will also not contribute to the official medal table.
IOC President Kirsty Coventry said in September that the neutral-athlete policy allows individual competitors to participate while maintaining broader sanctions against Russia and Belarus over the war in Ukraine. That approach was first used at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
While Belarus has not sent troops to Ukraine, it served as a staging ground for Russian forces at the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022.
Russia has been under various Olympic restrictions since 2016, initially over a state-sponsored doping program. Russian athletes competed under the Olympic flag in 2018 and under the banner of the Russian Olympic Committee in Tokyo in 2021 and Beijing in 2022.
Only 15 Russians and 17 Belarusians competed as neutral athletes at the 2024 Summer Games in Paris.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
