MOSCOW, October 12. /TASS/: The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has suspended the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) until further notice after the Russian organization included Olympic councils of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) as well as of the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions, the IOC said in a statement on Thursday.
"The Russian Olympic Committee is suspended with immediate effect until further notice," the statement reads.
According to the IOC, ROC’s inclusion of new Olympic councils from Russia’s new regions "violates the territorial integrity of the NOC [the National Olympic Committee] of Ukraine."
"The Russian Olympic Committee is no longer entitled to operate as a National Olympic Committee, as defined in the Olympic Charter, and cannot receive any funding from the Olympic Movement," according to the document.
The IOC also stated that it reserved the right to decide on a possible participation of Russian athletes under a neutral status in the 2024 Summer Olympic Games and 2026 Winter Games.
"As stated in the IOC’s position and recommendations of 28 March 2023, which remain fully in place, the IOC reserves the right to decide about the participation of individual neutral athletes with a Russian passport in the Olympic Games Paris 2024 and the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 at the appropriate time."
"The IOC EB [Executive Board] also reserves the right to take any further decision or measure depending on the development of this situation," the statement added.
