Tatyana Tarasova, an honored coach of the USSR, said the International Skating Union is dragging its feet on granting neutral statuses to Russian figure skaters, telling RIA Novosti that the delays reflect a broader unwillingness to let Russians compete.
Tarasova said the slow pace explained why Russian skaters had been kept out for more than four years, and predicted that nothing good would come of the situation and that something bad was certain to follow.
The ISU has permitted Russian and Belarusian figure skaters to compete under its banner in the 2026/2027 season, but without national symbols or anthems. The same restrictions apply to coaches and technical staff.
Six senior-level skaters have received neutral status: Adelia Petrosyan, Margarita Bazyluk, Alisa Dvoeglazova, Anna Frolova, Alina Gorbacheva and Grigory Fedorov.
