Russian Olympic Games team ban upheld meaning uncertain path for Medvedev, Rublev among others

In a recent ruling, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) rejected the appeal filed by Russia against the suspension of its membership by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

The suspension, imposed last October, resulted from the admission of the Republic of China as a member, thus recognizing regional organizations from Ukrainian territories illegally annexed by Russia during its invasion in February 2022.

The CAS upheld the IOC's decision: “The CAS panel in charge of this matter dismissed the appeal and confirmed the challenged decision, finding that the IOC executive board did not breach the principles of legality, equality, predictability or proportionality,” CAS said in its ruling.

"The Cas panel's decision is final and binding except for the parties' right to file an appeal to the Swiss Federal Tribunal within 30 days on limited grounds."

The suspension implies that the Republic of China can no longer operate as a national Olympic committee. Despite the controversy, the IOC expressed satisfaction with the verdict:

“The Cas decision is further evidence that civil and sports discrimination against Russians has reached unprecedented proportions in the run-up to the Games in Paris," the ROC said on Friday.

The Republic of China denounced the suspension as another political decision, while the IOC argued that including organizations under the control of the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine violated territorial integrity.

Additionally, the IOC allowed the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, scheduled between July 26 and August 11, 2024.

The situation leaves Russian and Belarusian athletes in a peculiar position, as they are allowed to compete as neutrals without representation of their countries in team competitions. This includes participating without displaying flags, emblems, or anthems of their respective nations.