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World Aquatics grants neutral status to Russian swimming champion Kolesnikov

Russia’s Ruslan Sadykov, as well as Sergey Fesikov and Alexander Martynov were also let in as neutrals

MOSCOW, April 16. /TASS/. The world’s governing body of swimming sports, World Aquatics, has granted two-time Olympic medalist and Russian Kliment Kolesnikov the right to take part in event as a neutral athlete, World Aquatics said in a statement on Wednesday.

Russia’s Ruslan Sadykov, a specialist in short-distance swimming, as well as Sergey Fesikov and Alexander Martynov were also let in as neutrals.

In March 2022, World Aquatics (FINA until December 2022) ruled to bar Russia and Belarus from FINA’s upcoming international swimming competitions.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommended international sports federations in late March 2023 to allow individual athletes from Russia and Belarus to participate in international sports tournaments, but only under specific 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.

Russian swimmer Kolesnikov

At the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Kolesnikov, 22, took home the silver and bronze medals in the 100-meter backstroke and 100-meter freestyle events respectively.

He is also a six-time world champion in short-course competitions in addition to his one silver and two bronze medals at the 2019 FINA World Aquatics Championships in South Korea’s Gwangju.

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