On October 16th, local time, the Russian law firm Sila Lawyers announced that the International Court of Arbitration for Sports found that prohibiting Russian athletes from participating in international competitions was discriminatory, which was the first judicial determination.

The law firm filed a complaint at the International Court of Arbitration for Sport on behalf of the Russian Table Tennis Federation, challenging the decision to ban Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating because of special military operations.

The arbitration tribunal ruled that this decision of the European Table Tennis Federation violated the principle of political neutrality and anti-discrimination clauses stipulated in the constitution of the organization and the Olympic Charter.

Lawyers pointed out that although this ruling only involves table tennis, it may become a policy turning point to change the overall treatment of Russian athletes. In addition, the International Court of Arbitration for Sport also found that the penalty decision prohibiting the use of national logos was in compliance with the regulations. (Headquarters reporter Wang Xinjun)