The International Olympic Committee said on Tuesday that Russians and Belarusians will not take part in the parade of athletes at the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympics in July.
Since 2016, Russia has had to compete under differing names at the Olympics.
That's the year it was revealed numerous Russian athletes had been involved in a years-long, state-sponsored doping scheme, which saw the nation collect plenty of medals.
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The International Olympic Committee (IOC) suspended Russia in 2017, but several Russian athletes who were not involved in the scheme won an appeal to compete in ensuing global competitions.
However, those athletes had to go by different names since competitions refuse to name Russia outright in the scheme's aftermath due to the bans.
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At the 2018 Winter Olympics, for example, Russian athletes who passed drug tests competed under the "Olympic Athletes from Russia," or OAR, delegation.
During the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, Russian athletes competed under the "Russian Olympic Committee," or ROC, delegation.
Will Russia compete as ROC again at the 2024 Olympics in Paris? Here's what to know:
What does ROC mean at the Olympics?
ROC at the Olympics refers to the "Russian Olympic Committee," which is the name Russian athletes compete under since Russia is banned due to its involvement in the war with Ukraine.
Why did Russia change to ROC?
The ROC name actually came to be at the Tokyo Olympics since Russia was banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency in 2019 for its state-sponsored doping program.
However, the athletes approved to compete cannot use the Russian flag or national anthem throughout the Olympics.
What will Russia go by at the 2024 Olympics?
Russia will not compete as ROC in Paris. Instead, Russian athletes will fall under the Individual Neutral Athletes delegation, or AIN (IOC country code after the French name Athlètes Individuels Neutres).
Can Russian athletes compete in the 2024 Olympics?
Yes, Russian athletes can compete in Paris, but they must be approved to do so. The same applies to Belarusian competitors. As of June 15, there were a combined 25 Russian and Belarusian athletes who were approved to compete in neutral events.
However, Russian and Belarusian athletes are barred from participating in the Paris Opening Ceremony.
How many Russian athletes will be at the 2024 Olympics?
It's not yet known how many Russian and Belarusian athletes will compete in Paris. However, the IOC did give an estimation.
“The maximum number, which is unlikely to be reached, would be 55 and 28 respectively,” the IOC told CNN.
For comparison's sake, Russia had 330 athletes in Tokyo, while Belarus had 104.
