There are less than 10 days left until the start of the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo. The last Olympic cycle was unique for Russia under conditions of international isolation—easing began too late, and most athletes are going without an international ranking. In this regard, the question arises: are Russian athletes’ chances at the podium realistic or just “neutral”?
Context: The Path to Admission
However, overall, the situation in international sports politics appears more favorable for us than usual. For instance, an interesting precedent occurred in fencing: Raido Mitt, Vice-Chancellor of the Estonian Ministry of Culture for Sports, stated that the country’s position remains unchanged: visas will not be issued to Russian and Belarusian athletes. This year, Estonia was supposed to host the European Fencing Championships. However, the International Fencing Federation (FIE) issued a directive: Estonia had to provide written guarantees for the admission of athletes from Russia and Belarus (the federation had admitted juniors from both countries to international competitions with their national flag and anthem on December 23rd). No written guarantees were provided. Consequently, the tournament was relocated to the French city of Antony and will take place in June with Russian athletes participating. This case demonstrates that the international response and the international sports community are changing. Yes, many organizations like the IIHF (ice hockey) or ISU (figure skating) are still either maintaining silence or making contradictory statements, but the example of the European Championships in Estonia shows that Russian athletes are preparing for a full-fledged return to the international arena.
Which Russian athletes are going to the Olympic Games?
On January 28, the Center for Sports Training of Russian National Teams published the final list of Russian athletes who will participate in the 2026 Olympic Games, bringing the final number to 13. Of course, the team is still limited—the Russian delegation will be one of the smallest at the Olympics. The only time it was smaller was at the 1908 Games, when Tsarist Russia was represented by just 6 athletes. But every athlete who made it is unique; many have participated in international competitions for the first time in their lives and have shown impressive progress.
From cross-country skiing, we will have Savely Korostelev and Daria Nepryaeva. They have finally received their invitations from the IOC to participate in the Olympic Games. The athletes gained motivation during the World Cup stages – and while they initially struggled to even qualify, in recent races, Daria and Savely have closed in on the leaders. The World Cup and the Olympics differ in the number of participants, so it’s hard to say yet whether it will be easier or harder for the skiers at the upcoming competitions. The team’s tactics also remain a secret for now: sports fans are speculating – will they attempt the impossible and aim for the podium in all events, or focus on those where they showed the most significant progress during the World Cup stages?
We’ll definitely be following figure skating: Adelia Petrosyan and Petr Gumennik will represent Russia. We won’t go into detail about their successes – both convincingly won the qualification tournament for the Olympics. And, undoubtedly, many consider them favorites. However, there is a complicating factor – due to the lack of an international ranking, the athletes have automatically been placed in the first warm-up group for the short program. They need to prove that their strength lies not only in technical elements but also in a high level of presentation. We won’t award medals prematurely – everyone remembers the sad events in Kamila Valieva’s career at the 2022 Games (who, incidentally, is returning to competition for the first time since her ISU suspension in a few days at the Russian Jumping Championships), but the chances for good results certainly exist. Adelia Petrosyan, with a clean skate of her uniquely difficult content (several quadruple jumps, triple axel), can aim high. Petr Gumennik has distinguished himself this season with his consistency – with clean skates and steady mental preparation, we can hope for leading positions.
Adelia Petrosyan and Petr Gumennik – 2026 Russian Champions
We are also awaiting results from Nikita Filippov, a ski mountaineer who won a bronze medal at his very first World Cup stage in ski mountaineering this year in France. His ambitions also delight us – the athlete stated in an interview with “Match TV”: “I believe there is a chance for a medal in any case.” Such results, of course, can’t help but make us happy. Let’s hope everything goes well for the athlete at the Olympics as well.
Nikita Filippov after winning bronze at the World Cup stage in Courchevel
Short track speed skaters Ivan Posashkov, Alyona Krylova, and speed skaters Ksenia Korzhova and Anastasia Semenova have also received invitations to the Olympics and have already accepted them. At the World Cup stages, the athletes have placed in the top 20 and top 10, and this is after a lengthy suspension. For them, the Olympics are motivation to make a breakthrough, both literally and figuratively, as their sports are all about speed.
On January 28, four more athletes joined the national team. They also secured Olympic quotas and accepted invitations from the IOC. The Russian Luge Federation (RLF) will be represented by Daria Olesik and Pavel Repilov, who placed within the top 20 at the recent European Championships and obtained Olympic licenses. Russian alpine skiers Yulia Pleshkova and Semyon Yefimov will participate in three disciplines at the Olympics. Pleshkova will compete in downhill and super-G, while Yefimov will take part in slalom.
Not the Time to Rest on Laurels
There is a mistaken opinion that the admission of athletes is already a victory. Many media outlets have already started hanging medals on Russians who haven’t even flown to Italy yet. Currently, enormous pressure is being put on Russian athletes – if they’ve been admitted, it means they must return with Olympic medals; the country’s future status and whether other athletes will be admitted later depend on you.
In our opinion, it’s worth remembering many factors. In particular, the fact that these athletes are the first to return after international isolation. Their coaching staffs are already putting pressure on them – instead of exacerbating it, we can write a few words of support on the athletes’ social media, or simply turn on the Olympic broadcast to support Russian athletes. You won’t even have to search for it – the Russian streaming service “Okko” has acquired the broadcasting rights. This is the simplest and yet most significant gesture: with our viewership and interest, we can create for them that very “home arena” they are currently lacking. The results will be on the scoreboard, but our support will stay with them much longer. We are with you with all our heart, soul, and thoughts!
Diana Yuknelite, Senior Research Assistant, Institute of China and Contemporary Asia of the Russian Academy of Sciences (ICCA RAS)
Follow new articles on our Telegram channel
