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Three figure skaters from Russia and Belarus, including an Olympic gold medal contender, were approved Thursday by the International Olympic Committee to compete in the Milan-Cortina Winter Games in February as neutral athletes.
They include 18-year-old Adelia Petrosyan, who showed medal potential in the women's singles by winning the Olympic qualifying event in Beijing in September.
Pyotr Gumennik, Russia's singles champion, won the men's event in Beijing two months ago, while Victoria Safonova of Belarus finished fourth behind Petrosyan. They have also received approved neutral status, the IOC said.
The qualifying competition in Beijing marked the first time the International Skating Union has allowed Russians to compete in one of its figure skating competitions since the full military invasion of Ukraine began in 2022, four days after the end of the Beijing Olympics.
The IOC is conducting its own review to approve the neutral status of Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in Milan Cortina, as it did ahead of the Paris 2024 Summer Games.
To be eligible, individual athletes must not actively support the invasion of Ukraine and have no ties to the Russian or Belarusian military or state security agencies.
Skaters must also accept an individual invitation and sign a pledge to abide by the Olympic Charter, the IOC said.
Petrosyan is the latest star skater to train with coach Eteri Tutberidze, who was a controversial figure at the Beijing Olympics.
Find out more about what actually went into designing the medals for the Winter Games, which begin next February.
