Nine skiers from Russia and Belarus, including former Olympic and world champions, have been granted approval to compete in qualifying events for the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Games, marking their return to international competition after nearly four years.
The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) confirmed on Wednesday that it had cleared the applications of three Russian and six Belarusian athletes for neutral status.
This decision allows them to participate in events leading up to the February 2026 Games, following their exclusion since the full military invasion of Ukraine. FIS did not disclose whether any applications were rejected.
To qualify for neutral status, athletes and their support staff must not have publicly endorsed the war and must not possess ties to military or state security agencies.
Among those approved are Belarusian freestyle skier Hanna Huskova, who secured gold in women’s aerials at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics and silver in Beijing four years later.
Russia’s Anastasia Tatalina, a 2021 Big Air world champion, and cross-country skiers Savelii Korostelev and Dariya Nepryaeva also received neutral status ahead of upcoming World Cup races in Davos, Switzerland.
This development follows a ruling last week by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which compelled FIS to begin processing applications for neutral status from the Russian ski federation and its athletes.
However, Russian athletes and team officials may still encounter difficulties obtaining visas to enter certain countries hosting World Cup qualifying events across various skiing and snowboarding disciplines.
The Winter Olympics in Italy will run from February 6-22, with the torch relay already well underway, although the official lighting ceremony took place at an unusual location - a local museum in Olympia due to concerns over the weather in the area.
The opening ceremony is due to take place at Milan’s iconic San Siro prior to just over two weeks of action.
