Overview
- The International Skating Union has refused neutral competition permission to Kamila Valieva and three other 2022 Russian Olympians — Mark Kondratiuk and the ice dance team Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin.
- The ISU gave no specific reasons for the denials and said it will not comment on individual cases while appeal rights remain available.
- The four skaters have three weeks to appeal the ISU decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which would be the next step in resolving their eligibility.
- Separately, Valieva has filed a claim at the European Court of Human Rights that the Swiss courts refused to consider alleged new evidence in her 2022 doping case, a legal track that remains active after her suspension ended late last year.
- The broader context is that the ISU has expanded neutral entries this season but bars skaters who serve with military or security forces, took part in operations against Ukraine, or have publicly supported the war, leaving eligibility decisions and legal fights to shape which Russian athletes can return to international competition.