The International Olympic Committee (IOC) extended invitations on Thursday to eight top Russian tennis players, as well as Belarus' Aryna Sabalenka and Victoria Azarenka, to participate as neutral athletes at the Paris Olympics.
However, some have already declined the anticipated offer.
Among the Russian men invited to compete at Roland Garros from July 27 to Aug. 4 are Daniil Medvedev (ranked No. 5), Andrey Rublev (No. 6), Karen Khachanov, and Roman Safiullin.
The Russian women – Daria Kasatkina, Liudmila Samsonova, Ekaterina Aleksandrova, and Mirra Andreeva – are currently ranked from No. 14 to 24, respectively.
Sabalenka, a two-time Australian Open champion, has already announced she will skip the Olympics to avoid switching from Wimbledon on grass back to clay at the Olympics, then to hard courts in August ahead of the U.S. Open. Rublev has reportedly cited health reasons for not attending.
Tennis is the latest Olympic sport to confirm invitations to Paris as part of a vetting process allowing some athletes from Russia and its military ally Belarus to compete with neutral status in individual sports during the invasion of Ukraine.
The International Olympic Committee is overseeing vetting to block athletes who expressed support for the Russian invasion or had ties to sports clubs linked to the military or state security services.
Russia and Belarus are already excluded from team sports at the Paris Games opening on July 26.
Earlier this month, the IOC announced that a first round of 14 Russians and 11 Belarusians were eligible and invited to Paris, including in cycling, weightlifting, and wrestling. Some invitations have been declined.
On Thursday, two athletes in rowing and two in shooting from Belarus were invited to compete in Paris, though none in modern pentathlon. Russia did not have entry quota places in those three sports.
It is still unclear how many Russian athletes will compete at the Olympics. The IOC has already barred those who do from taking part in the opening ceremony parade of athletes scheduled on boats sailing along the River Seine.
