A decision has not yet been made on whether Russia will be able to display its national flag and colors or play its national anthem at the Olympics.
Published July 7, 2026
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has provisionally lifted the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee, marking a significant step towards Russia’s return to the Olympic quota in time for the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
The IOC said on Tuesday that its executive board had lifted the suspension but had not yet decided whether to allow the display of the Russian flag and colors or the playing of the national anthem at the Summer Olympics.
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Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) was suspended from recognizing regional Olympic councils in the Russian-occupied regions of Ukraine (Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhia) in October of the same year.
He insisted on continuing support for Ukraine.
IOC President Kirsty Coventry told a press conference: “We do not condone any war, including this one. We will continue to support Ukraine as we have since the war began. But we do not believe the athletes should pay the price.”
“We don’t want athletes to be responsible for government actions.”
“We have made it clear that all athletes have the possibility to participate in the Olympics. This is what this decision speaks for. It will allow Russian athletes to participate in sports competitions. We thought it was very important for athletes to have that possibility,” Coventry said.
He added that the IOC will continue to closely monitor Russia.
There was no immediate reaction from Ukraine.
Russian Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev said the IOC’s decision should pave the way for the full return of Russian athletes to the international sports scene.
“Our country’s return to the Olympic family is a green light for international federations to bring back all athletes,” Degtyarev said.
Russian athletes participated as neutral athletes in the 2024 Paris Olympics and the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
“This decision was taken after a thorough analysis by the IOC Legal Affairs Committee, taking into account that the Republic of China no longer includes as a member regional regional sports organizations under the jurisdiction of the National Olympic Committee (NOC) of Ukraine,” the IOC said in a statement.
The IOC said in 2023 that Russia’s recognition of regional Olympic councils in the occupied territories of Ukraine violates the Olympic Charter and the territorial integrity of the Ukrainian Olympic Committee.
“The Republic of China has confirmed that it has not and will not conduct any activities in these areas. The IOC EB continues to closely monitor the situation regarding the activities of the Republic of China in these areas and reserves the right to take further measures if it deems necessary,” it said on Tuesday.
doping scandal
In addition to Russia being ostracized for its invasion of Ukraine, the country’s athletes’ return to competition comes against the backdrop of one of the most damaging doping scandals in Olympic history.
The country has been under intense scrutiny since a 2015 World Anti-Doping Agency-commissioned report found evidence of systematic doping in Russian athletics, and later revealed a state-sponsored cover-up before and after the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics.
Russia was banned from competing under its flag in several subsequent tournaments, with many athletes allowed to compete only as neutrals, and in 2019, after it was discovered that the Russian government had manipulated testing data, doping agencies imposed a four-year ban, but the sanction was later reduced to two years by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Russian officials have repeatedly denied the existence of a state-sponsored doping program.
“We request that appropriate testing be carried out for Russian athletes participating in the LA28 event,” Coventry said.
Sanctions against Russian athletes have been lifted by various sports federations around the world.
World Swimming ruled in April that athletes from Russia and Belarus will be allowed to compete under their national flags in international swimming and water sports competitions after the sport’s governing body lifted the ban.
In the same month, World Boxing allowed boxers from Russia and Belarus to compete in international competitions as neutral competitors “with immediate effect.”
In May, the IOC recommended that athletes from Belarus be allowed to compete again with full national identity and not be subject to review for their neutral status.
