MOSCOW, December 24. /TASS/. The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) has granted the right of the neutral status participation in international tournaments to five more Russian athletes, the FIS press office said in a statement on Tuesday.

The athletes at the issue are freestyle skiers Nikita Andreyev, Nikita Novitsky and Svetlana Andreyeva, as well as snowboarder rider Ilya Khurtin and ski jumper Ilya Mankov.

Russian freestyle coaches Nikolay Shimbuyev and Yury Zukal were also granted a neutral status.

The Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ruled on December 2 to allow Russian athletes to participate in FIS-sponsored tournaments as neutrals.

On March 1, 2022, the International Ski and Snowboard Federation banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from competing in federation-sponsored tournaments. The decision followed recommendations from the International Olympic Committee (IOC) against the background of the aggravation of Russian-Ukrainian relations. The ban was subsequently extended multiple times.