The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced on July 7, 2026, that it is lifting the suspension of Russia’s Olympic teams, allowing them to compete at the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles. This decision comes after the IOC's legal affairs commission determined that the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) no longer includes regional sports organizations from Ukrainian territory as members.
The IOC had initially banned Russian teams from competing under their national flag in October 2023, following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which remains ongoing. At the 2024 Summer Games in Paris and the Winter Games earlier in 2026 in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Russian athletes participated only as individual neutral competitors.
With the suspension lifted, Russian teams are now permitted to compete again, though the IOC has yet to decide if they may display the Russian flag or play the national anthem. Additionally, the IOC stated it will not host Olympic events in Russia nor invite Russian officials to its events.
The National Olympic Committee of Ukraine strongly disagreed with the IOC's decision, calling it "premature, unjustified, and adopted without due regard to the objective circumstances" of the conflict, which is nearing its 54th month.
The announcement came less than 48 hours after Russia launched a missile and drone attack on Kyiv, resulting in 11 deaths and 64 injuries, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Earlier this year, during the Winter Olympics, the IOC disqualified Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych for wearing a helmet honoring athletes and coaches killed by Russian strikes during the war.
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