No Flag, No Anthem: Russia Shut Out As A Nation At Winter Olympics -- Peace Deal or Not

Russian athletes will not compete under their national flag at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, regardless of whether a peace deal is reached with Ukraine, International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Kirsty Coventry has confirmed.

Speaking to Corriere della Sera, Coventry made it clear that the IOC’s stance is final: Russians will be allowed to participate only as neutral, individual athletes, with no flag, anthem or national identity attached.

“At this stage, nothing would change the decision,” Coventry said, shutting the door on any speculation of a late reversal ahead of the February Games.

Russia, along with Belarus, has been barred from Olympic representation since February 2022, following Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

The IOC reaffirmed in September that athletes from both countries could only compete at Milano Cortina under neutral status, continuing the policy enforced at recent Olympic and international events.

Coventry, who became the IOC’s first female president, also used the interview to look beyond the geopolitical standoff.

She suggested that multi-city Olympics, like Italy’s shared hosting between Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, are likely to become “the new normal” — a model she believes future hosts will increasingly adopt.

The Milano Cortina Winter Games are scheduled to run from February 6 to 22, 2026, and will serve as a key test case for that distributed-host approach.

The IOC has not yet formally responded to requests seeking confirmation of Coventry’s remarks.

(with Reuters inputs)