Parisian patterns: our top athletes will miss the Olympic Games again

The long-awaited autumn meeting of the IOC Executive Committee did not bring good news about the easing of sanctions against Russian athletes and freer access to the upcoming Olympic Games. A brief summary of the decisions made by the head of the organization, Kirsty Coventry, is that representatives of Russia and Belarus will speak at the Olympic Games in Italy on the same terms as in the summer of 2024 in Paris: without team disciplines, without a team competition, without an opening ceremony, without special invitations.

What happened

On Friday evening, September 19, the IOC held a press conference following the meeting of the executive committee, which took place in Milan and primarily aimed at inspecting the readiness of Olympic facilities. In addition, political conflicts that are currently taking place in the world were discussed during the meeting. IOC President Kirsty Coventry did not directly say which events were in question, but it was clear that Ukraine and the Gaza Strip were in focus.

And if we don't know about any decisions regarding Israel yet (we only mentioned the creation of another working group on this issue), then a release has been published regarding Russia. It states that the principles of participation of Russian athletes in the Olympic Games in Italy remain the same as in the case of Paris 2024.

— We are fully confident in the decision on Paris and after a long discussion we decided that nothing should be changed. It would be most correct to leave everything as it is," said the head of the IOC.

What are these principles? First, and most importantly, admission to the Olympic Games is possible only for athletes of those international federations that have approved the program of neutral statuses and issued such statuses to athletes with a Russian passport. So far, only ski climbers, figure skaters, speed skaters, and short-track athletes have this opportunity. The International Skating Union and the Ski Mountaineering Federation are currently the only winter federations that have already launched these programs. Luge and bobsleigh have refused, skiing and biathlon have not yet expressed themselves unequivocally, but there is a small hope for skiers.

— We are working with international federations on the issue of admission and, as you know, some have not yet opened their doors to neutrals. We work very closely with them, such as the FIS, to enable athletes to participate," said IOC Sports Director Pierre Ducray.

In such statements, some federations are called that way for a reason and others are not called that way. The fact that the FIS was mentioned and the IBU was not mentioned, most likely means that biathlon has zero chances. Hockey and curling will definitely not participate, as these are team disciplines.

At the same time, the neutral status from the international federation itself will not be enough. The IOC will assemble its own commission, which will additionally check athletes for compliance with the requirements of neutrality. The experience of the recent Summer Games shows that those who already have the status can be rejected here. For example, in the summer of 2024, this happened to Abdulrashid Sadulaev and other Russians. Even those athletes who have already received neutral status and, like ski mountaineer Nikita Filippov, have earned a nominal quota to Milan, must go through another filter, already from the IOC.

Additionally, as is usually the case, three months before the start of the Games, all neutrals will be included in the pool of the International Testing Agency (ITA), which will begin performing additional doping checks during the pre-Olympic period. Since all neutrals are required to comply with anti-doping rules, special attention will be paid to their sports environment.

What is the result

The current situation is not good. There is only one Filippov in ski mountaineering, and the ISU has not yet qualified, although the skaters have good chances, even if only two of them. Another five or six people in total will be selected in skating and short track. Thus, the application of neutrals from the Russian Federation is unlikely to exceed 10 people. This is not what was expected in our country. Objectively, only figure skaters have medal chances.

Are there any possible changes? If the IOC's work with FIS yields at least some results, then perhaps a minimum number of athletes will be allowed. For example, one man and one woman for each skiing discipline (cross-country skiing, alpine skiing, freestyle skiing, ski jumping, cross-country skiing and snowboarding).

You probably shouldn't count on something more serious. For greater access, it seems that a radical change in the political situation is necessary. And since the qualifying tournaments have already been completed or will be completed before December, any further admission is possible only by special invitations, which will require changes in the tournament schedule and other difficulties.

"At the same time, it was a good signal that the IOC intends to ensure the participation of all national Olympic committees and their athletes in the 2026 Youth Olympic Games in Dakar," Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev wrote on his Telegram channel. — In fact, this means that the Milan Games should be the last where our athletes will participate in a neutral status.

Well, at least that's the hope. The Games in Italy will be held from 6 to 22 February.