According to Reform.news, the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine, the Ministry of Youth and Sports and a group of national sports federations have sent 30 official appeals to international sports governing bodies.
Renewed pressure after IOC shift
The move follows a decision by the International Olympic Committee’s Executive Board on May 7, 2026, to amend its recommendations on the participation of Belarusian athletes in international competitions under national symbols.
The National Olympic Committee of Ukraine said the change had prompted several international federations to consider allowing not only Belarusian, but also Russian athletes, to compete again under state symbols. The development was described by the National Olympic Committee of Ukraine as the basis for the latest wave of official appeals.
Ukraine points to war and sporting losses
In their letters, Ukrainian officials argued that any return of athletes from what they called “aggressor states” under national symbols would come while Russia continues its full-scale war against Ukraine and Belarus remains involved by providing territory and infrastructure for military operations.
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Ukraine also pointed to the damage suffered by its own sporting community. The appeals cite destroyed sports facilities, the deaths of more than 600 Ukrainian athletes and coaches since the start of the full-scale invasion, and what Ukraine says is the impossibility of fair competition under current conditions.
Olympic rules and doping concerns
The Ukrainian side urged international federations to take into account the IOC’s 2023 decision to suspend the Russian Olympic Committee, which was linked to violations of the territorial integrity of Ukraine’s National Olympic Committee.
The appeals also referred to findings by the World Anti-Doping Agency on systemic anti-doping violations in Russian sport, arguing that questions of integrity remain central to any discussion about a return under national symbols.
Appeals sent across global sport
The letters were sent to federations covering a wide range of sports, including boxing, volleyball, judo, hockey, shooting, sailing, rowing, speed skating, basketball, cycling, equestrian sport, bobsleigh and skeleton, wrestling, figure skating, modern pentathlon, swimming, tennis, canoeing, athletics, roller sports, triathlon, archery, American football, baseball, luge, rugby, sport climbing, weightlifting and football.
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The campaign underlines Ukraine’s continued opposition to any easing of restrictions on Russian and Belarusian athletes while the war continues.
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