UK government backs Russian athletes to compete as neutrals for Olympics

The British government has suggested it could drop its opposition to Russian athletes competing in Paris

The UK Government has suggested it will back Russian athletes competing as neutrals at the Paris Olympics (Getty Images)

The British Government has indicated that it is prepared to drop its opposition to Russian and Belarusian athletes competing in the Paris Olympics and Paralympics in light of a recent tightening of strict neutrality rules.

The Government has written to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) to underscore its own position, with which it says it is confident the respective governing bodies now concur.

The IPC issued a stricter set of guidelines relating to the eligibility of Russian and Belarusian athletes last month, which brought it broadly into line with previous statements issued by the IOC.

They include requirements that Russian and Belarusian athletes must compete in neutral uniforms, will not feature in either opening or closing ceremonies or in medals tables, and will be independently vetted to ensure they have never publicly supported the Ukraine war.

Government officials have backed the toughened stance but denied a U-turn. A Government spokesman told the PA news agency: “Russian and Belarusian athletes representing their country should not be permitted in domestic or international sporting competition. That position still stands.”

The IPC attracted criticism last year for voting to only partially suspend the respective Olympic committees, paving the way for them to compete as neutrals. ParalympicsGB said at the time that the decision “does not align with the values of the Paralympic movement”.

The IOC has taken a tougher stance, with the Russian Olympic Committee still suspended. Russia’s unsuccessful appeal against the sanction in February provoked a furious response from the Kremlin, whose spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused IOC president Thomas Bach of damaging the Olympic movement.

Russia has also confirmed that it intends to push ahead with staging a ‘Friendship Games’ in Moscow and Ekaterinburg in September, which the IOC has described as “a violation of the Olympic charter”.

Russian and Belarusian athletes have been allowed to compete in the UK under strict neutrality rules since the invasion of Ukraine. However, the rigorous criteria, mirrored by many other governments and individual sports federations, means as few as 60 Russian and Belarusian athletes may qualify to compete as neutrals in Paris.