World Gymnastics has cleared athletes from Russia and Belarus to return under their national flag and anthem, effective immediately

Russian and Belarusian gymnasts have been cleared to return to international competition after being banned for over four years, the World Gymnastics Executive Committee announced on Monday. The decision reverses a ruling that had been denounced by Moscow and Minsk as politically motivated.

Following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022 and the imposition of sweeping Western sanctions on Russia and Belarus, Olympic federations barred athletes from the two countries across dozens of sports. Some restrictions were later eased, allowing select competitors to take part under a neutral status.

Russian officials have repeatedly accused Western countries of politicizing sport and pressuring federations to exclude their athletes. Earlier this year, President Vladimir Putin denounced what he described as selective sanctions against Russian competitors, arguing that the differing treatment compared with other conflicts exposed political bias and corruption within international sports bodies. He has also insisted that athletes should be granted equal access to competition based solely on merit, stressing that "politics has no place in sport."

World Gymnastics said in a statement that Russian and Belarusian athletes would be allowed to compete with immediate effect across all five disciplines represented by the Russian Gymnastics Federation. These include artistic gymnastics, rhythmic gymnastics, trampoline, acrobatic gymnastics, and aerobic gymnastics.

The president of the Russian Gymnastics Federation, Oleg Belozerov, welcomed the move, stressing the importance of unity in the global gymnastics community and protecting athletes' interests. Russian gymnasts are now expected to compete under the national flag for the first time since 2022 at next month's World Cup stages in Bulgaria and Azerbaijan.

World Gymnastics became the fifth Olympic federation to allow Russian athletes to compete at international tournaments under their national flag. Similar decisions were previously adopted by the international federations for judo, taekwondo, and aquatic sports, as well as the governing bureau of United World Wrestling.

Last week, the International Olympic Committee's Executive Board maintained the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee and upheld recommendations on sanctions against Russian athletes, while recommending the removal of restrictions on Belarusian competitors. The Kremlin described the IOC's stance toward Russia as disappointing.

(RT.com)