IOC eases Russia restrictions before Los Angeles 2028 qualifying
The Olympic body told sports federations to end neutral-status vetting for Russians, while leaving flag and anthem questions unresolved.
By Daniel Okafor · Business Editor
2 min read
The International Olympic Committee moved Tuesday to ease restrictions on Russian athletes before qualifying begins for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The IOC advised Olympic sports federations to end a three-year system that screened Russian competitors for permission to take part as neutrals.
The decision also provisionally lifts the IOC’s suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee, which had been in place since October 2023. The IOC said the grounds for that suspension no longer applied.
The suspension was imposed after Russia’s Olympic body absorbed regional sports councils from Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia, according to the IOC. Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine with Belarus as a military ally, and the war has shaped Olympic eligibility decisions since then.
The IOC said after an executive board meeting that it remained supportive of Ukraine’s Olympic community. “The IOC stands in solidarity with the Olympic community of Ukraine, which the Olympic movement has supported since the beginning of the war, and will continue to do so,” the organization said.
The move followed an IOC recommendation two months earlier that athletes from Belarus be allowed again to compete under their national identity. Belarus had been subject to similar restrictions because of its role as Russia’s ally in the war in Ukraine.
The IOC has not cleared Russian athletes or teams to return with the Russian flag and anthem. The organization said that decision would be made “at an appropriate time.”
At the 2024 Paris Olympics, only 32 athletes from Russia and Belarus competed as approved neutrals, according to the Associated Press. They won five medals combined. Russia sent more than 300 athletes to the 2021 Tokyo Olympics and won 71 medals, the AP reported.
The IOC said Russian athletes seeking to return to international competition must still meet anti-doping conditions. To address what it called a lack of confidence in global sport over Russia’s return, the IOC said those athletes must undergo multiple doping controls and be covered by a recognized testing program.
The organization also said it would continue to keep IOC events out of Russia. It said Russian government and state officials would not be invited to IOC events.
The next Olympic competition on the calendar is the 2026 Youth Summer Games in Dakar, Senegal, which are scheduled to open Oct. 31. The Los Angeles Olympics are set for 2028, with qualifying events across sports expected to determine which athletes and teams can compete.
This story draws on original reporting from NPR.