IOC sets guidelines for Russian athletes’ 2018 Olympics ‘neutral status’ uniforms
The list of guidelines, published on Wednesday on the official website of the world's governing Olympic body, contains 13 provisions stipulating requirements for Russian athletes at the upcoming Olympic Games.
The IOC's Executive Board announced its decision on December 5 to suspend the Russian national team from taking part in the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in South Korea's PyeongChang over multiple doping abuse allegations.
The IOC, however, stated that doping-free athletes from Russia could go to the 2018 Olympic Games under the classification of neutral athletes, or what the IOC labels as the OAR status, which stands for ‘Olympic Athlete from Russia.'
In line with IOC's published list of requirements, "Athletes' uniforms (Ceremonies, competition, training and casual), accessories and equipment can only have two types of wordmarks: "OAR" and/or "Olympic Athlete from Russia," while officials accompanying them "can only have one type of wordmark: ‘OAR.'"
The IOC also prohibited any resemblance of the Russian national flag on uniforms stating that "Only single or dual color elements are permitted on uniforms" adding that "separate items of clothing cannot create a tricolor."
"No national identifications design elements should be featured on the uniforms," one of 13 provisions on the IOC list stated in particular.
A source in the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) told TASS earlier in the day that the ROC filed with the IOC a list of 350 national athletes planning to participate under the IOC's neutral status in the 2018 Winter Games.
The initial list of Russia's athletes planning to go for the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang was approved by the ROC in April 2017 and had a total of 633 athletes.
The upcoming Olympics, which are the 23rd Winter Games, will take place in South Korea's PyeongChang on February 9-25, 2018.