Paris 2024, Russians with neutral flag

Paris 2024, the decision

The International Olympic Committee recently granted permission for Russian and Belarusian athletes to participate in the Paris 2024 Games under a neutral flag. Those who actively supported the Russian invasion of Ukraine and team events were excluded from Olympic competition.

At present, only eleven "individual neutral athletes" have qualified, eight Russians and three Belarusians, compared to the sixty or so Ukrainian athletes. The selection of athletes will be carefully monitored by the International Olympic Committee to ensure fair and equitable play for all.

The recent decision by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) reaffirms actions taken a year ago to reintegrate Moscow and Minsk into the global sports community, and nine months ago called on government sports bodies to identify strategies to allow individual athletes to participate in competitions.

It will be the responsibility of each governmental body in each Olympic discipline to evaluate and enforce neutral athlete status for those who have not actively supported war and who do not have collaborative agreements with military or state security agencies. Athletes with this status will have to compete without any national identification: flags, anthems or colors. However, the ban on participation in the competition of team sports remains in place for Russia.