The International Olympic Committee has invited eight Russian tennis players, as well as Belarusians Aryna Sabalenka and Victoria Azarenka, to compete in the Paris Olympics under neutral banners on Thursday. Some of them have already declined the offer.
Russian tennis players who have been invited to participate in the Olympic tournament, which will take place from July 27 to August 4 at Roland Garros, are Daniil Medvedev (No. 5), Andrey Rublev (No. 6), Karen Khachanov (No. 21) and Roman Safiullin (no. 43).
Russian players Daria Kasatkina (no. 14), Liudmila Samsonova (no. 15), Ekaterina Aleksandrova (no. 22) and Mirra Andreeva (no. 24) were also invited.
Sabalenka, a two-time Australian Open champion, has already said she will sit out the Olympics to avoid having to acclimatise to different playing surfaces in such a short space of time. Rublev, for his part, has cited health reasons for his absence.
Tennis is the latest Olympic sport to have its invitations to Paris handed out as part of a selection process aimed at allowing some Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete under neutral banners in individual events despite the invasion of Ukraine.
The IOC is overseeing the process to ensure that athletes who have previously publicly expressed support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine or who are affiliated with sports clubs linked to the Russian military or state security services are excluded.
Russia and Belarus are excluded from the team competitions at the Paris Games, which begin on July 26.
Earlier this month, the IOC announced that it had issued invitations to 14 Russian and 11 Belarusian athletes for the Paris Olympics. They compete in cycling, weightlifting and wrestling. Some invitations have been declined.
It is still unclear how many Russian and Belarusian athletes will be able to participate in the Paris Olympics. The IOC has already indicated that those who will participate will not be able to take part in the opening ceremony, which will take place on boats that will sail on the Seine.
