IBU and FIS confirm Russians will not appear at 2026 Games even in a neutral status

The International Biathlon Union (IBU) and the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) are not discussing the possibility of Russian and Belarusian athletes returning to official competitions. They are not even talking about their admission in the so-called neutral status.

This is reported by Verstka, which received a response from the organizations. The federations emphasized that they had not received any requests from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to consider the participation of athletes from the Russian Federation and Belarus in the 2026 Games.

"This issue is not on the table. There is nothing but rumors at the moment, which we refuse to comment on," said Christian Winkler, the IBU's communications director.

As a reminder, next year's Olympic Games will be held in Milan, Italy, from February 6 to 22.

Earlier, the IOC confirmed that it would follow the same strategy for athletes from Russia and Belarus as it did at the Paris 2024 Games. The organization said at the time that the final decision on their admission to the 2026 Olympics will be made later.

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