The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) has approved the application of nine Russian athletes to feature in international competition as neutrals.

The decision was reached after the body’s Doping Review Board confirmed that the athletes in question have met the exceptional eligibility criteria to feature in international competition as neutral athletes in 2018 under competition Rule 22.1A(b) while the suspension on the Russian national federation (RusAF) is still valid.

The Athletics body had earlier in December 2017 issued a simplified application process for 2017 Authorised Neutral Athletes to reapply for continued eligibility to feature in international competitions in 2018.

Since the piblication, the IAAF has received more than 140 applications from Russian athletes and 30 of them have so far been given the go ahead to compete as Authorised Neutral Athletes in 2018.

The IAAF Doping Review Board members include Robert Hersh (chair), Sylvia Barlag and Antti Pihlakoski.

2018 Authorised Neutral Athletes

Date of announcement and athlete/event:

12 April 2018: Klavdiia Afanaseva (race walks), Kseniya Aksyonova (sprints), Olga Eliseeva (race walks), Yuliya Lipanova (race walks), Vasiliy Mizinov (race walks), Sergey Sharypov (race walks), Sergey Shirobokov (race walks), Sergey Shubenkov (sprint hurdles), Yana Smerdova (race walks)

21 February 2018: Maksim Afonin (shot put), Anna Krylova (triple jump)

2 February 2018: Ilya Shkurenev (combined events)

25 January 2018: Viktor Butenko (discus), Danila Danilov (hammer), Alexsey Fedorov (triple jump), Irina Gumenyuk (triple jump), Vyacheslav Kolesnichenko (sprints), Mariya Lasitskene (high jump), Aleksandr Lesnoy (shot put), Alyona Lutkovskaya (pole vault), Danil Lysenko (high jump), Alaina Mamina (sprints), Yuliya Maltseva (discus), Polina Miller (sprints), Ilya Mudrov (pole vault), Olga Mullina (pole vault), Sofiya Palkina (hammer), Viktoriya Prokopenko (triple jump), Anzhelika Sidorova (pole vault), Aleksei Sokyrskii (hammer).