Russian and Belarusian gymnasts will be able to compete again: “As neutrals and under strict conditions”

The International Gymnastics Federation (FIG) announced that athletes from Russia and Belarus, excluded from tournaments since March 2022 due to the invasion of Ukraine, will be able to compete again.

In the statement, the FIG stated that gymnasts will be included as of January 1, 2024 and explained that the authorization will be for them to compete as “individual neutral athletes” and “under strict conditions.”

“Any athlete who wishes to obtain individual neutral athlete status must submit an application to the FIG in accordance with the Ad-hoc Rules (they will be published within a few weeks). This should lead, if the conditions are met, to the granting of individual neutral athlete status by the FIG,” said the Federation.

The decision follows the recommendation of the International Olympic Committee to allow the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes under the neutral flag, something that Federations such as athletics and swimming have not yet adopted. The president of the FIG, , stated that “by accepting Russian and Belarusian gymnasts to participate in competitions as neutral and independent athletes, the FIG ensures that the rights of all athletes are respected and sends a message to the world that gymnastics seeks peace.”

“Although these decisions allow a return to FIG-sanctioned events for Russian and Belarusian athletes, which may include Olympic qualification events for Paris 2024, the decision on whether Russian and Belarusian athletes will be eligible to participate in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games is the responsibility of the IOC,” the statement said.

Individual only: What are the chances of Russian and Belarusian gymnasts being in Paris 2024 (como titulo)

In March 2022, the FIG decided to suspend Russian and Belarusian gymnasts from international competitions and, for this reason, they were unable to participate in two qualifying tournaments for Paris in artistic gymnastics: the 2022 Liverpool World Cup and the one that will be held from September 30 to October 8 in Antwerp.

Next year, after the ban has been lifted, the 2024 World Cup Series will award two spots on each device and the last places will be distributed in the Continental Championships in the All-Around events: five athletes of each gender will win a place and this time it will be nominal.

In rhythmic gymnastics, on the other hand, the 2022 Sofia World Cup has already passed and the Valencia World Cup will be held from 21 to 27 August. In this way, Russians and Belarusians will only have their chance next year at the Continental Championship or the other Continental Qualifying Event approved by FIG. Finally, in trampoline gymnastics, the first qualifier will be the Birmingham World Cup from November 9 to 12, in which they will not be able to participate, but they will be able to participate in the five World Cup Series that will also provide places for Paris: the three best results will be taken into account.

Russia’s dominance in Olympic gymnastics

The former Soviet Union was the great dominator of artistic gymnastics and had enormous exponents such as Larisa Latynina, Nikolai Andrianov, Boris Shakhlin and Viktor Chukarin. Russia competed in Tokyo 2020 as ROC and won gold medals for both men’s and women’s teams, in addition to winning silver medals with Anastasiia Iliankova (asymmetric bars) and Denis Ablyazin (jump) and bronzes with Nikita Nagornyy (beam and All Around) and Angelina Melnikova (floor and All Around).

In rhythmic gymnastics, Russia had won the gold medal in the last five Olympic Games until the series was cut in Tokyo, where ROC won silver in the full group competition and Dina Averina was also second in singles. Evgenia Kanayeva, champion in Beijing and London, is the most successful gymnast in history. Meanwhile, Belarus is also one of the strongest in the world in this field.

“If neutral athletes don’t show off the national colors, everything will work out. We will take the time necessary to make a decision. I suppose we will take it at the IOC session to be held in October in India,” said Thomas Bach, president of the International Olympic Committee.

Following the decision to lift the suspension, the International Gymnastics Federation will have the painstaking task of deciding whether Russian and Belarusian gymnasts who want to participate as neutrals meet two fundamental requirements: not belonging to the army and not having spoken out in favor of the war. How many will there be?