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[ad_1] LAUSANNE: Olympic chiefs on Friday gave the green light to the  participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes at next year's Paris Games as neutrals, outside of team events and as long as they did not actively support the war on Ukraine. The International Olympic Committee added that there were currently only eight athletes from Russia and three from Belarus who had qualified as neutral athletes. In comparison, more than 60 Ukrainian athletes have qualified for next year's Paris Olympics . The IOC's executive board "decided that Individual Neutral Athletes (AINs) who have qualified through the existing qualification systems of the International Federations (IFs) on the field of play will be declared eligible to compete at the Olympic Games Paris 2024". But only, it added, if they meet strict eligibility conditions. That includes the exclusion of "teams of athletes with a Russian or Belarusian passport". Also missing out will be &

[ad_1] LONDON: Russian and Belarusian athletes will continue to be barred from competitions organised by skiing's global federation (FIS) due to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, the governing body said on Wednesday. The International Olympic Committee recommended in March that athletes from Russia and Belarus be allowed to return to international competition as neutrals, provided they did not support the war or were not affiliated with the military. Several sporting bodies banned athletes from both countries following the invasion, which Moscow describes as a "special military operation". Belarus has been a key staging area for the invasion. "The current FIS policy, which does not allow the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials in FIS events, will remain in effect until further notice," the FIS council said in a statement following its Spring meeting. The decision received praise from some of the federations within the FIS.