Three Russian skiers cleared to compete internationally under neutral status

The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) has published a list of Russian and Belarusian skiers who have been granted permission to compete at international events under a neutral status.

Source: International Ski and Snowboard Federation

Details: Six Belarusian and three Russian athletes have received approval. Among the Belarusians, neutral status was granted to freestyle skiers Anastasiya Andriyanova, Anna Deryugo, Igor Drobyankov, Anna Guskova and Vladislav Vozniuk, as well as alpine skier Maria Shkanova.

As regards Russia, approval was given to freestyle skier Anastasia Tatalina and cross-country skiers Saveliy Korostelev and Darya Nepryaeva.

Korostelev is a two-time junior world champion in 2022, with his victories recorded on 23 and 25 February 2022. Just days later, FIS decided to suspend Russian athletes from international competitions.

Darya Nepryaeva is the younger sister of Natalia Nepryaeva, who won the overall World Cup title in 2022. After Russian athletes were suspended, the elder Nepryaeva married Russian national team sprinter Alexander Terentyev and changed her surname.

In a statement, FIS noted that this is only the first list of athletes admitted under neutral status and that it is likely to be expanded.

It is worth noting that in cross-country skiing, the World Cup stage in Davos, Switzerland (12-14 December) is the final opportunity to secure an Olympic quota, while in most other ski disciplines quota places can be obtained until the end of January.

Background: On 21 October, the FIS extended the suspension of Russian and Belarusian skiers for the entire 2025/26 season, but later lost an appeal at CAS, which forced the federation to launch a procedure for admitting neutral athletes.

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