The council of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation has voted to exclude athletes from Russia and Belarus from participating in qualifiers for the upcoming Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. This decision, made in Oberhofen, Switzerland, effectively prevents Russian and Belarusian skiers and snowboarders from competing in numerous events at the Games in February.
While the International Olympic Committee permits athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete as “Individual Neutral Athletes,” as seen at the Paris Olympics last year, it leaves the decision to the respective international federations governing each sport. FIS, which has prohibited the national teams of Russia and Belarus since 2022, has chosen not to allow neutral athletes to participate.
The ruling by FIS extends to Paralympic events under its jurisdiction, despite the International Paralympic Committee reinstating Russia and Belarus as full members recently. This decision is crucial as it precedes the upcoming alpine skiing World Cup event, a women’s giant slalom in Austria, by four days.
Although Russia may not be a dominant force in alpine skiing, it excels in disciplines like cross-country skiing, snowboard slalom, ski jumping, and freestyle skiing. Allowing Russian athletes to compete as neutral participants could have led to tensions between FIS and the primarily northern European countries hosting its World Cup events.
FIS, as the largest among the nine international sports federations overseeing Olympic sports, will play a significant role in the Milan-Cortina Olympics, with its events accounting for nearly half of the total medals awarded. The absence of Russian representation in ski events may result in only a handful of “neutral athletes” competing at the Games.
While some sports, such as ice skating and ski mountaineering, have provided pathways for Russian athletes to qualify, disciplines like hockey and biathlon have maintained their bans. A few figure skaters have already qualified as neutrals, with more potential qualifiers expected in speed skating through upcoming events. In ski mountaineering, one Russian athlete has secured a spot as a neutral participant, representing the sole confirmed neutral athlete in a snow sport, contrasting with the 206 athletes from the Russian Olympic Committee and the 24 from Belarus who participated in 2022.
The decision by FIS showcases its stance on the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes and highlights the complexities surrounding the inclusion of neutral athletes in the upcoming Winter Olympics.
[End of rewritten article]