Russia Challenges World Athletics Ban at Top Court

Russia's athletics federation has taken its fight against international sanctions to the highest sports court, lodging an appeal against the World Athletics Council's decision to maintain the ban on Russian athletes competing in international events.

The World Athletics Council reaffirmed the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes on July 3, four years after the initial sanctions were imposed following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The Russian Athletics Federation described the decision as discriminatory and announced it has hired specialist lawyers to challenge it at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

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The Russian Athletics Federation said on Thursday it had lodged an appeal with sport's highest court over the World Athletics Council's decision to extend the suspension of Russian athletes from international competitions.

This continued ban means Russian track-and-field athletes remain barred from international competitions. This stance contrasts with a recent move by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), which provisionally lifted its suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee on Tuesday. That decision was seen as a significant step toward Russia's potential reintegration into the Olympic movement.

Despite the ban from World Athletics events, Russian athletes have previously competed as neutrals. They participated under neutral status at the 2024 Paris Olympics and are expected to do so again at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Games.

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it considered the decision to be discriminatory and that it had engaged specialist lawyers to challenge it at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).