Ukraine Challenges IOC’s Reinstatement O poof Russian Olympic Committee

Ukraine’s National Olympic Committee (NOC) has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to reinstate the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC), arguing that the move was made prematurely.

The IOC suspended the ROC in 2023 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine but lifted the suspension on July 7, 2026, saying the sanction was “no longer applicable.”

The decision marks another step towards Russia’s return to international sports and could pave the way for Russian athletes to compete under their national flag at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

However, according to BBC Sport, the Ukrainian Olympic body has challenged the IOC’s decision, maintaining that the issues that led to Russia’s suspension have not been adequately resolved.

“The position of the NOC of Ukraine is based on the fact that the IOC’s decision was made prematurely and without proper verification of whether the violations — which led to the suspension of the ROC following the appeal by the NOC of Ukraine on October 6, 2023 — had actually been resolved,” the committee said.

The Ukrainian committee also argued that the IOC overlooked an earlier ruling by CAS, which in 2024 upheld the suspension of the ROC over its inclusion of sports organisations from Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine.

“The NOC of Ukraine also points out that as early as 2024, the CAS confirmed the legality of the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee, recognising that the inclusion of sports organisations from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine violates the territorial integrity of the NOC of Ukraine and the provisions of the Olympic Charter,” the statement added.

Ukraine warned that restoring the ROC’s rights without resolving the underlying issues would undermine international sports law and set a harmful precedent for the Olympic movement.

“For this reason, the Ukrainian side believes that reinstating the ROC’s rights without effectively addressing these violations is incompatible with the principles of international sports law and sets a dangerous precedent for the entire Olympic Movement,” the committee said.

Russian and Belarusian athletes competed as neutrals at the 2024 Paris Olympics and the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina under restrictions linked to the war in Ukraine.

Russia also remains suspended by FIFA, while World Athletics rejected an IOC recommendation in May to lift restrictions on Belarusian athletes and teams.

The outcome of Ukraine’s appeal before CAS will determine whether the IOC’s decision to reinstate the Russian Olympic Committee stands ahead of future international competitions.