PERM, October 19./TASS/. Competing at the Olympic Games under a neutral status, without a flag and anthem, is a disgrace, Irina Viner, president of the Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation, believes.

"We are all very worried since we keep hearing one and the same thing regarding the Olympic Games - lower, even lower, stay down. In a way, we are being 'kept down' all the time," Viner told a meeting of the Council on Physical Culture and Sports at the Russian president. "Sometimes we are accused of doing something wrong, or our athletes are dressed in white uniforms, without the anthem, without fans. Our colleagues and children will not go to the Games under this status - it's a disgrace," the sports official stressed.

"We are used to hearing our anthem when our flags are raised. The most popular song at the world championships is always the Russian anthem. And now, to compete at the Games is beneath the dignity of a country like Russia," Viner added.

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.