"The thirty-two Russian athletes, who did not receive an invitation to participate in the Olympics in Pyeongchang, have filed a class action lawsuit against the IOC with the court of first instance of the Tribunal in Lausanne, demanding to urge the IOC to admit them to participate in these Games. The foundation for the claim is non-transparent nature of the criteria applied, discrimination on the basis of citizenship, unlawful nature of the decision, as well as non-fulfillment of the CAS ruling, damage to reputation, dignity and professional careers,” the statement said.
The legal firm noted that the nature of the IOC’s criteria for invitations to the Olympic Games, as well as the abuse of the organization’s monopoly position also served as the basis for the Russian athletes’ suit.
The court hearing for the appeals is scheduled for 4:00 GMT on Wednesday, the legal firm added.
In December, the IOC suspended the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) over an alleged state-sponsored doping scheme in the country and prohibited Russian athletes from competing under the national flag in the upcoming 2018 Winter Olympics, saying that only "clean" athletes may participate in the contest under a neutral flag.
READ MORE: IOC Head Notes Need for CAS Reform After Russian Athletes Appeals Upheld
So far, the IOC has invited 169 Russian athletes to compete in the upcoming Winter Games. The invitations have not however been extended to a number of leading Russian athletes.
"The parties are exchanging written submissions and a hearing is likely to be held on February 7, 2018. The Panel’s decision will be communicated as soon as possible thereafter," CAS added.
Last week, CAS fully overturned the IOC ban for 28 Russian athletes and partially upheld the appeals against the ban for 11 others.
However, on Monday, the IOC Invitation Review Panel recommended that the committee not extend an invitation to the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang to 15 Russian athletes and coaches, who were among the 28 acquited.
