UWW Rules on Individual Neutral Athletes at 2024 Olympic Games

United World Wrestling announced today that they have made 16 wrestlers eligible to compete as Individual Neutral Athletes in the 2024 Olympic Games (for wrestling purposes). Wrestlers from Belarus and Russia have been able to compete under that designation (AIN) over the past two years. As they compete with the AIN designation, athletes are not permitted to wear uniforms with their nation’s flag and will not have their national anthem played in the event they win a gold medal. 

During the Olympic qualification process, there had been 26 quotas earned by Belarusian and Russian wrestlers, so some very notable athletes will not be permitted to compete. Most notable are Zaur Uguev, Zaurbek Sidakov, and Abdulrashid Sadulaev. Each were gold medalists in 2021. 

The Russians invited to compete in all three styles are:

Freestyle
Nachin Mongush (57 kg)
Shamil Mamedov (65 kg)
Arslan Bagaev (86 kg)
Abdulla Kurbanov (125 kg)

Greco-Roman
Alan Ostaev (87 kg)
Magomed Murtazaliev (97 kg)

Women's Wrestling
Natalya Malysheva (53 kg)
Veronika Chumikova (57 kg)
Alina Kasabieva (62 kg)
Elizaveta Petliakova (68 kg)

The Belarussians invited to compete in all three styles are:

Freestyle
Yahor Akulich (74 kg)
Uladzislau Kazlou (97 kg)

Greco-Roman
Abubakar Khaslakhanau (97 kg)
Dzmitri Zarubski (130 kg)

Women's Wrestling
Viyaleta Rebikava (53 kg)
Krystsina Sazykina (62 kg)

The release from the UWW stated that there will be a process for replacements in the ten weights which now have unused quotas. There was no clarification as to whether those countries would be able to provide a substitute or another nation could take the quota or whether the athletes that were not cleared could be cleared at a later date.