MOSCOW, February 7. /TASS/. The Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) received last month five applications from athletes requesting TUE (Therapeutic Use Exemptions) permits, an agency spokesperson told TASS on Tuesday.

"RUSADA received six requests for Therapeutic Use Exemptions in July," the spokesperson said.

In all, according to TASS information, RUSADA received 63 requests for TUE permits since the start of the year (six in January, eight in February, 21 in March, five in April, 13 in May, five in June and five in July).

The agency reported earlier that in 2022 RUSADA received 78 appeals from national athletes requesting TUE permits and 40 out of them were granted approval.

TUE is a term used by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the United States Anti-Doping Agency, which allows an athlete to legally consume a drug from the list of banned substances if an athlete is "required to take [the drug] to treat an illness or condition." A number of experts believe that many athletes use these TUE permits as a loophole to evade doping penalties.