KUALA LUMPUR: The Badminton World Federation (BWF) has maintained its ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes participating in international tournaments, the governing body said on Thursday.

The BWF first banned Russian and Belarusian athletes in March last year after Russia invaded Ukraine.

The BWF’s decision comes despite the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recommending last month that athletes from Russia and Belarus be allowed to return to competition as neutrals, providing they did not support the war or were not affiliated to the military.

The BWF said in a statement that the decision to extend the ban was taken at its council meeting on Tuesday. “BWF acknowledges that sport should foster peace and solidarity between all people, and that sport should not become a political vehicle for influence in geo-politics,” the governing body said.

“In that sense, the guiding principle is that athletes should always be allowed to participate in sport competitions without judgement of their passport and separate of any geo-political conflict outside the control of the sports movement.

“However... BWF is not convinced there is satisfactory justification to lift the suspensions on Russ­ian and Belarussian players and officials at this time.

Singles and doubles qualification in badminton for next year’s Olympics in Paris will be based on results achieved in tournaments between May 1, 2023 and April 28, 2024.

Published in Dawn, April 21st, 2023