As in many other sports, Russian and Belarusian biathletes have been suspended from international competitions since Russia began its war of aggression against Ukraine in February 2022.
The Russian side wants to change that. According to the Russian website Sport-Express, the country's biathlon federation planned to file an appeal against the suspension with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on Wednesday.
Following the skis
"The Russian Biathlon Federation will appeal to CAS today. The Russian Olympic Committee (ROK) is providing all necessary support," said Sports Minister and ROK President Mikhail Degtyarev on Wednesday, according to Sport-Express.
Several sports have let Russia into the heat just in time for the Olympics in Italy in February, including figure skating, ice skating and ski mountaineering.
The biathlon door has been completely closed, but now the Russian Federation sees an opening. This after CAS forced the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (Fis) to welcome back Russians and Belarusians. Fis decided earlier this fall to maintain its suspension, but Russia appealed to CAS, which overturned the Fis decision.
Tight on time
For example, this means that two Russian cross-country skiers – who, among other things, have also met the requirement of not having actively supported the war – can compete in this weekend's World Cup competitions in Davos.
In its assessment, CAS highlighted FIS' own statutes, which emphasize that the federation should be "politically neutral." According to the arbitration court, this is against suspending athletes solely based on nationality.
It is not a given that the same assessment will be made for biathlon. The International Biathlon Union (IBU) itself has said that only those skiers who are already approved to compete in IBU competitions – such as the World Cup – can qualify for the Olympics.
And even if Russia's appeal is upheld, it is unclear whether the country's biathletes will have time to qualify for the Olympics in Milan and Cortina.
