Skeleton - Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics Test Event - IBSF Bobsleigh International Sanctioned Race - Yanqing National Sliding Center, Yanqing, China - October 26, 2021 Russia's Lubov Chernykh and Elena Mamedova in action during the Women's 2-Woman bobsleigh REUTERS/Tingshu Wang
Dec 12 (Reuters) - Two Russian bobsledders and seven of the country's skeleton racers were granted Individual Neutral Athletes status by the International Bobsleigh & Skeleton Federation on Friday, allowing them to compete in IBSF events.
Liubov Chernykh and Sofiia Stepushkina were named to the AIN list for bobsleigh, while Viktoriia Fettel, Alena Frolova, Polina Kniazeva, Daniil Romanov, Vladislav Semenov, Polina Tiurina and Ermei Zykov were included for skeleton.
Three officials, one medical doctor and five coaches/technicians were also added to the AIN list.
IBSF published in a statement the "list of athletes and support personnel of Russian nationality who have been granted the status of AIN and, therefore, are cleared to participate in certain IBSF events (Women's Monobob, Women's Skeleton, Men's Skeleton)."
The development comes after the IBSF Appeals Tribunal partially lifted the ban on Russian athletes in October.
The announcement follows a broader trend across winter sports. On Wednesday, the International Ski and Snowboard Federation approved AIN status for a total of nine Russian and Belarusian athletes, enabling them to take part in qualifying events for next year's Milano Cortina Olympics.
The International Olympic Committee said on Thursday that Russian and Belarusian youth athletes should compete in international events without access restrictions, marking a first step in easing sanctions imposed following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
(Reporting by Pearl Josephine Nazare in Bengaluru; Editing by Ken Ferris)
