Ski federation says it won't allow Russian and Belarusian athletes in 2026 Olympic qualifiers

The International Ski and Snowboard Federation says its council has voted against allowing athletes from Russia and Belarus to compete in qualifiers for the upcoming Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.

The decision Tuesday in Oberhofen, Switzerland by the council of the governing body, known as FIS, effectively blocks Russian skiers and snowboarders from dozens of events at February's Games.

The International Olympic Committee allows athletes from Russia and its ally Belarus to compete as "Individual Neutral Athletes," as they did at last year's Paris Olympics.

However, the IOC allows the international federations which run each sport to decide whether to use that system in their qualifiers. FIS, which has barred the Russia and Belarus national teams since 2022, has opted against allowing neutral athletes.

FIS said the decision also applies to Paralympic events it oversees. The International Paralympic Committee restored Russia and Belarus to full membership last month.

The decision comes four days before the first alpine skiing World Cup event of the season, a women's giant slalom in Austria.

Russia isn't a major power in the marquee alpine skiing events but is one of the strongest nations in cross-country and a repeat medal-winner in snowboard slalom, ski jumping and freestyle.

Allowing Russians to compete as neutral athletes could have caused friction between FIS and the mainly northern European countries which host its World Cup events.

One day after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, FIS declared that Russian skiers could keep competing but without the national flag or anthem. A day later, Norway pledged to bar the Russians from upcoming competitions it was hosting. FIS swiftly backtracked