Twenty-eight Russian athletes have had their lifetime bans from Olympic sport overturned - just over a week away from the Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang.
Although this is not a declaration of their innocence - rather it is due to insufficient evidence for the bans - this reversal means the athletes can retain their performance records from the 2014 Winter Olympics and can compete again.
The International Olympic Committee says its campaign against doping has been shaken by the decision.
Al Jazeera's Rory Challands reports from Moscow on the implications.
