Aryna SABALENKA reportedly excluded from list of neutral athletes at Paris Olympic Games days after tragic passing of ex-boyfriend

It is more bad news in particular for Aryna Sabalenka only days after the tragic passing of her ex-boyfriend, Konstantin Koltsov as she is not eligible to play in this years' Paris Olympic Games, it has been reported.

Sabalenka who plays this week at the Miami Open only days after he reportedly committed suicide saw off Paula Badosa and will now face Anhelina Kalinina in the third round for a spot in the Last 16. But James MacLeod, CEO of the International Olympic Committee announced that following a board meeting in Lausanne that 37 Russians and 22 Belarusians will be able to take part in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.

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"The group is so small because it only includes those who have not publicly supported the invasion and have no relationship with the army or military agencies," explained the IOC in a note.

Only a few Russian and Belarusian players will actually be allowed to play in Paris with Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev among those allowed. Those who can play are those who have no involvement or have denounced the regime previously. Daria Kasatkina is also likely to play as a result given that her and Rublev in particular have not returned to Russia since the war broke out and have been very vocal about their stance surrounding the war.

They will compete as neutrals and will not take part in any sort of Opening Ceremony either with an ad hoc anthem and no addition to the medal table. With the minimal athletes, there will only be just over 50 maximum over all sports with different procedures such as doping and also their stance considered when being vetted. But for Sabalenka and also Victoria Azarenka, it seems like they have not been allowed to compete given they are not on the list. The former was previously linked to President Lukashenko and refused to take part in press conferences after consistent questioning about this topic after they were previously pictured together.

The ITF previously released this statement on the matter and in an update their stance has not changed.

“The International Olympic Committee and International Paralympic Committee will allow qualified and eligible athletes with Russian and Belarusian passports to compete in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games as Individual Neutral Athletes (“AIN”) and Paralympic Games as Neutral Paralympic Athletes (“NPA”). The ITF confirms that tennis players from these nations will be allowed to enter the Olympic and Paralympic tennis competitions in an individual and neutral capacity if they comply with the IOC’s AIN and the IPC’s NPA principles. Neutral athletes will need to meet the selection and eligibility requirements as set out in the applicable ITF Regulations.

“The ITF decision aligns with the majority of International Federations (IFs) regarding individual competition and athletes participating in the Paris 2024 Games this summer. The ITF’s position is also in accordance with tennis’ existing international policy which was adopted in March 2022.

"As part of the Qualification Systems for the Olympic and Paralympic Wheelchair Tennis Events, provisions in the ITF regulations allow nations to apply for an exemption from the minimum Davis Cup, Billie Jean King Cup and World Team Cup participation requirements when these have not been met by individual players. As the Russian and Belarusian national tennis federations are currently suspended by the ITF, further details on the process for their players to compete as neutral athletes will be provided in due course."

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