In a tersely worded announcement, the International Ski Federation (FIS) announced that its ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes would continue. The entirety of the release was contained in the summary notes of decisions made at the FIS Council meeting held May 24th.
The current FIS policy, which does not allow the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials in FIS events, will remain in effect until further notice. FIS press release dated 5/24/23
FIS’s decision is at odds with the IOC’s (International Olympic Committee) position which allows for athletes to compete from the banned countries under a neutral flag.
Other FIS News
Additionally, FIS announced that after adopting equal racing distances for men and women it would also apply the same rules to World Championships and Olympics.
In its post council meeting notes, FIS stated that:
“After introducing the same race distances for women and men to race equal distances last season, it was approved to move ahead with these distances in the future also at the World Ski Championships. An application process for the change of Olympic Winter Games distances will be initiated with the IOC. The approved distances are
- 10 km | 20km | 50km
- Skiathlon 10 + 10 km
- Relay 4×7,5 km | Team sprint
- Sprint”
Lahti to host 2028 World Championships
FIS also revealed that there is only one candidate, Lahti, Finland to host the Nordic World Championships in 2028. That means barring any unusual developments, Lahti should be the host venue.
