On Thursday, the ROC released a list of 169 athletes who had filed their applications to participate in the Olympics in 2018. However, there were several leading Russian athletes in the list who had not been invited by the IOC commission to participate in the Olympics.
"All athletes were registered, the team of Russian Olympic athletes was registered in full volume," Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) First Vice President Stanislav Pozdnyakov told Sputnik.
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On December 5, 2017, the IOC Executive Board suspended the ROC over a doping scandal, which means Russia won't be able to send its team to the next Olympic Games. Nevertheless, the IOC has allowed athletes from Russia to participate in the upcoming Winter Games in Pyeongchang under a neutral flag, in case they prove they are "clean".
According to the IOC explanation on the issue, announced on January 26, the decision on the invitation of Russian athletes were made by the Invitation Review Panel and based on specific criteria, including the evidence "provided by the [Richard] McLaren and the [Samuel] Schmid Reports, by the Disciplinary Commission of Denis Oswald, information provided by various departments of the World Anti-Doping Agency and intelligence provided by Olympic Winter Sports Federations and the Pre-Games Testing Taskforce."