All sanctions against Russian and Belarusian athletes in aquatic sports lifted

All restrictions on Russian and Belarusian athletes in aquatic sports have been lifted.

Source: World Aquatics

Details: As a result, Russian and Belarusian athletes will now be able to compete in international tournaments as full participants, including under their national flags and symbols. The decision applies to swimming, diving, artistic swimming, high diving and water polo.

Background:

• Last year, the international federation World Aquatics allowed Russian and Belarusian water polo players to return to international competitions in a neutral status from 1 January 2026.
• That decision meant that the Ukrainian and Russian national teams were due to face each other on 13 April in a Water Polo World Cup match. However, Ukraine's team withdrew from the fixture, which could result in a technical defeat.
• Previously, Russia and Belarus had also seen full sanctions lifted in judo and sambo, while in other sports they had only been partially eased.

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