They will compete as “neutral” athletes: The International Skating Union has allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in the competition
30 June 21:10
The International Skating Union (ISU) has allowed Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete under “neutral” status in figure skating, short track, and speed skating events organized under its auspices. This is stated on the organization’s website, according to "Komersant Ukrainian".
The ban on the participation of athletes from Russia and Belarus in figure skating, short track, and speed skating had been in place since the start of the full-scale invasion until the 2025–26 season.
In 2025, the ISU had already partially eased the restrictions, allowing certain “neutral athletes” to participate in Olympic qualifying events. The federation explained that it had not recorded any incidents during this format.
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Russia and Belarus will now be allowed to participate in all ISU-sanctioned competitions during the 2026/27 season, provided they do not use their national flags or anthems. The participation of athletes from these countries will depend on there being no evidence of a violation of their “neutral” status.
“In making its decision, the Council took into account events within the Olympic movement and the various approaches of other international federations, particularly instances where the lifting of restrictions led to incidents at competitions, as well as the participation of neutral athletes in the 2025/26 Olympic qualifying competitions and at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milan-Cortina without any such incidents,” the statement reads.
As a result of this decision, athletes from Russia and Belarus will be able to compete in European and World Championships under the auspices of the ISU.
At the same time, in figure skating, “neutral” athletes cannot receive spots to compete in the Grand Prix, as invitations have already been allocated. However, representatives from Russia and Belarus may be able to compete in Grand Prix events if other skaters withdraw.
Meanwhile, the ban on Russian sports officials remains in effect. The ISU noted that it recognizes the need to develop a mechanism for their possible return to work within the federation.
It should be noted that this ISU decision is not an isolated one. Recently, several international sports federations have eased or lifted sanctions against athletes from Russia and Belarus. In particular, this was done by the International Wrestling Federation (United World Wrestling), the International Gymnastics Federation (FIG), the World Boxing Organization (World Boxing), and the International Modern Pentathlon Union (UIPM).
In 2025, Russian athletes competed under their own flag and national anthem at the Paralympic Games for the first time since 2014. The previous long-standing ban was linked to doping scandals, and since 2022, the participation of Russian and Belarusian Paralympians has been restricted due to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
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