Norway joins Poland in protesting return of Russian swimmers

Evgeny Rylov was the last Russian athlete to win an Olympic Gold in swimming - competing for the Russian Olympic Committee in Tokyo in 2021 [Getty Images]

The Norwegian Swimming Federation (NSF) has joined Poland in saying it will not host international championships as long as athletes from Russia and Belarus area allowed to to compete.

World Aquatics lifted neutrality restrictions last week to allow swimmers from the two nations to compete under their flags.

Competitors from the two countries had only been able to compete as neutrals since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022, with Belarus a close ally of Russia.

The Polish Swimming Association announced on Friday that athletes from Russia and Belarus would not be welcome to compete at next year's European Diving Championships if the war in Ukraine is still ongoing.

NSF president Cato Bratbakk told Reuters: "Our position is clear. We will not host any championships as long as Russian and Belarusian senior and junior competitors have full access, entry rights, and are permitted to use their flags and national anthems.

"We are scheduled to meet with Nordic colleagues next week, where we hope our position will create momentum against the decision made by World Aquatics."

Norway has never hosted the World Aquatics Championships and last co-hosted the European Aquatics Championships in 1985.

The move by World Aquatics followed that of the International Paralympic Committee, which admitted Russian and Belarusian athletes under their national flag at the recent Games in Milan-Cortina.