The Russian Olympic Committee has been suspended by the International Olympic Committee’s executive board, but no decision has yet been taken on whether individual athletes from the country will be allowed to compete at next summer’s Games in Paris.
The IOC said in a statement that the ROC’s suspension related to its unilateral decision on October 5 to include as members regional sports organisations which are under the authority of the Ukrainian Olympic Committee.
These regional organisations are within territories annexed by the Russian military amid its invasion of Ukraine.
The IOC added: “The IOC reserves the right to decide about the participation of individual neutral athletes with a Russian passport in the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 at the appropriate time.”
Ukraine had threatened to boycott next summer's Games in Paris if the full ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes competing was not upheld.
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On March 28, the IOC set out recommendations that international sports federations could apply on allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to return to competition on strict conditions of neutrality.
Explaining the conditions, which would apply to individual athletes and not teams, IOC president Thomas Bach said: "Participation of athletes with Russian and Belarusian passports in international competitions works. We see this almost every day in a number of sports, most prominently in tennis but also in cycling, in some table tennis competitions.
International Olympic Committee President Thomas Bach announced the decision (AFP via Getty Images)"We see it in ice hockey, handball, we see it in football and in other leagues in the United States but also in Europe and we also see it in other continents. In none of these competition security incidents have been happening."
UEFA, European football's governing body, have this week abandoned plans to reinstate Russian Under-17 teams into the European Championships following a backlash, with the decision reached on Tuesday.
Following that decision FA chair Debbie Hewitt said: "Speaking as an English FA, we made our position very clear 18 months ago - we won't play Russia in any category age group as long as there is a war. We felt very strong in that. That is a position we retain."
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