UFA, October 6. /TASS/. The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) has filed a lawsuit with a Swiss court demanding more than $8 million from the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Vladimir Sengleyev, the ROC director general, said on Friday.

"The IOC owes us money. It has not paid us for our share of the Top 10 marketing program, which amounts to $3.71 million that we never received on December 31, 2022," Sengleyev said speaking at the all-Russia forum of the national Olympic councils, held in the city of Ufa.

"This year we were owed a payment of $5 million and, therefore, their [the IOC’s] outstanding debt currently exceeds eight million [US] dollars," the Russian sports official continued.

"We have filed a lawsuit with a Swiss court demanding this contract be enforced," he added.

IOC sanctions against Russia

On February 28, 2022, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) issued recommendations to international sports federations to bar athletes from Russia and Belarus from taking part in international tournaments, citing Moscow’s special military operation in Ukraine as the reason.

Following the IOC’s recommendations in late February 2022, the majority of global sports federations decided to bar athletes from Russia and Belarus from all international sports tournaments.

In late March, 2023, the IOC recommended to permit individual athletes from Russia and Belarus to take part in international sports tournaments, but only under certain conditions. Specifically, athletes from the two countries should not be "actively supporting" Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine and must compete under a neutral status. Russia and Belarus were also banned from participating in international team events.

No clear-cut decision has been made on behalf of the IOC regarding the participation of Russian and Belarusian athletes in the 2024 Summer Olympics.

The French capital of Paris is scheduled to host the 2024 Summer Olympic Games between July 26 and August 11, 2024.