The 15 Russian 'neutrals' at the Paris Olympics are politically isolated and rarely in the spotlight

Mirra Andreeva and Diana Shnaider of Individual Neutral Athlete react as they play against Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini of Italy during women's doubles gold medal tennis match at the Roland Garros stadium, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, in Paris, France.

Mirra Andreeva and Diana Shnaider of Individual Neutral Athlete react as they play against Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini of Italy during women's doubles gold medal tennis match at the Roland Garros stadium, at the 2024 Summer Olympics, Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024, in Paris, France. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte)


7 photos
Save Story

Estimated read time: Less than a minute

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

PARIS — The 15 Russians competing at the Paris Olympics have an uneasy status as "Individual Neutral Athletes" following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Some in the Olympic Village opposed them taking part in the Summer Games, and Russian opinion is divided. In Russia, the Olympics aren't being shown on TV and some politicians and media figures have even described those willing to compete in Paris as traitors. It's a complex environment for the athletes, some of them teenagers, to navigate and they're wary of talking about politics or the war.

Photos

Most recent Olympics stories

Related topics

James Ellingworth
    KSL.com Beyond Series

    KSL Weather Forecast

    KSL Weather Forecast
    Play button