ROME, November 5. /TASS/. World Archery Europe (WAE) has announced a decision taken by its Executive Board to lift the existing restrictions against Russian Archery Federation athletes, teams, and officials in WAE-sanctioned events effective 1 January 2027.

"This reinstatement is without prejudice to any applicable laws, host-country requirements, visa restrictions, or public authority instructions. WAE will continue to assess the situation where events in Europe are hosted and comply with any applicable national regulations," the WAE said.

A similar decision was made by World Archery, the international federation for the Olympic sport of archery, in August. Prior to that, Russians had to compete as neutral athletes. However, this decision was not applicable to events sanctions by the continental federation, as it was supposed to a separate decision on the matter.

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

On July 7, 2026, the IOC Executive Board restored the Russian membership and recommended lifting the restrictions on the participation of Russian athletes in international competitions.