World Gymnastics has announced its decision to lift restrictions on athletes from Russia and Belarus on May 18. The announcement comes days away from the Burgas FIG Acro World Cup.

This marks a pivotal shift, as coaches, administration, and competitors from the aforementioned nations will return to competition with a clean slate.

The governing body announced the end of the multi-year exile in its official monthly bulletin.

“The [Executive Committee] has decided to lift all restrictions applicable to Russian and Belarusian athletes since February 2022, with immediate effect,” the bulletin read.

The decision was welcomed by Oleg Belozerov, President of the Russian Gymnastics Federation, in a statement reported by Gymnastics Now.

“The Russian Gymnastics Federation welcomes the decision of World Gymnastics to fully restore the rights of Russian athletes, returning them the opportunity to perform under the national flag and with the national anthem.”

The committee also announced the dismantling of the administrative framework that governed the neutral athletes over the past few years.

“The FIG Ad-Hoc rules are therefore no longer in force,” the statement read.

Belozerov celebrated the opportunity that the athletes will now have to compete under their flag and anthem. He thanked the president of World Gymnastics, Morinari Watanabe, for the decision and praised the committee for ending the deadlock.

Following geopolitical tensions in 2022, athletes from Russia and Belarus were barred from competing at World Gymnastics-sanctioned competitions across all formats. To bridge the gap between exclusion and return, the committee introduced a system of Authorised Neutral Athletes (AIN).

The status allowed athletes to compete only if they followed the procedure of remaining neutral. They were prohibited from wearing Russian or Belarusian colours or flags and from using their national anthem.

The latest decision has rendered those rules null and void. Athletes, even without the AIN status, will now have the opportunity to compete.

World Gymnastics hasn't provided a reason for this sudden decision. Other major governing bodies, such as World Aquatics, United World Wrestling, and the International Paralympic Committee, have followed suit by lifting their restrictions.

The impact of this decision will become apparent as competitors previously sidelined return to their stage.

End of Angelina Melnikova's Exile

The recent announcement will bring relief to Olympic champions like Angelina Melnikova ahead of the 2026 World Gymnastics Championships in Rotterdam.

The multi-year ban had been a hurdle for Melnikova, as she famously missed the 2024 Olympics in Paris and was restricted to the domestic circuit. During this period, she dominated the Russian Cup and National championships.

When the door for neutral athletes was opened, the Olympic gold medalist was the first Russian athlete to return to the international floor. Her return at the 2025 World Gymnastics Championship proved triumphant, as she won three individual medals, with gold in vault apparatus.

With the ad-hoc rules null and void, Melnikova will mark her complete return to the international stage. Fellow Tokyo gold medalist, Viktoria Listunova, will also appreciate the decision. The 21-year-old recently appealed her AIN status to CAS after World Gymnastics denied her request.

Read more at the Gymnastics Digest!

Written by

Sebi Mehta

Edited by

Sijo Paul