Olympics-Paris Games could feature only 40 Russian athletes, says IOC's Coates

FILE PHOTO: John Coates, President of the International Council of Arbitration for Sport (ICAS) and IOC Vice-President is pictured during the inauguration ceremony of the new headquarters for the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), an independent institution that resolves around 900 legal disputes in the field of sport through arbitration and mediation, in Lausanne, Switzerland, June 27, 2022. REUTERS/Denis Balibouse/File Photo

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Senior International Olympic Committee (IOC) Vice-President John Coates is unsure how many Russian athletes will compete as neutral athletes at the Paris Games, but thinks reports that it might be as low as 40 could be close to the mark.

Under sanctions put in place because of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, for which Belarus acted as a staging post, the IOC is allowing only some Russian and Belarussian athletes to compete in Paris under tight restrictions.