MOSCOW, December 8. /TASS/. The Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) received last month seven applications from athletes requesting TUE (Therapeutic Use Exemption) permits, an agency spokesperson told TASS on Friday.

"RUSADA received seven requests for Therapeutic Use Exemption permits in November," the spokesperson said adding that the agency granted approval last month to three of the requests submitted earlier in the year.

In all, according to TASS information, RUSADA received 101 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; five in July; seven in August; 15 in September; nine in October and seven in November).

The country’s anti-doping body reported previously that in 2022 RUSADA received 78 applications 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.