LAKE PLACID, N.Y. (AP) — Russian bobsled and skeleton athletes will not compete at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics, the governing body for those two sports decided on Friday.
The International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation voted down a notion that could have let Russian athletes compete as individuals with neutral status. The vote was held at the federation's congress in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy — the site of the sliding events for the Winter Games in February.
Friday's move follows a similar decision made by the International Luge Federation in June. Both the bobsled-skeleton and luge federations have kept Russian athletes from competing in major international events — such as World Cup races and world championships — since that country invaded Ukraine in 2022.
“Following extensive discussions, the Congress decided by secret ballot not to allow the participation of Russian athletes as neutral athletes in IBSF events,” the federation said.
Russian officials said afterward that the vote was not unanimous.
The decision was not unexpected, and even if Friday's vote had gone differently the path for Russian athletes toward actually qualifying for the Milan-Cortina Games still could have been quite challenging. They haven't competed on the top international circuits in more than three years and it's unclear which — if any — sleds might have been good enough to earn an Olympic spot.
It is possible that Russia could appeal, though time is running out. The World Cup season begins at the Cortina track on Nov. 21. The Milan-Cortina Olympics open on Feb. 6.
“I can’t speak for every athlete, but I can speak for myself and I don’t think it’s a surprise," U.S. bobsledder Kaillie Humphries said Friday. “Even if they were allowed in, how would it work? Is it fair to Ukraine, to Ukrainian athletes, to other athletes that might have family or connections there? It would just create a whole storm of issues.”
There were 28 sliders from Russia — 10 in luge, six in skeleton and 12 in bobsled — at the 2022 Beijing Games, though they competed under the Russian Olympic Committee flag and not the actual Russian flag. That was part of the sanctions levied against Russia for the state-sponsored doping scandal that overshadowed the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
The Beijing Games closed four days before the attack on Ukraine started. Russian athlete Tatyana Ivanova won a bronze medal in women’s singles luge.
At the 2024 Paris Olympics, Russia and military ally Belarus were excluded from team sports but athletes in individual sports could apply for neutral status to compete. A total of 32 accepted invitations from the International Olympic Committee after passing eligibility tests that included not publicly supporting the war and not having ties to military and state security agencies.
AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/winter-olympics
FILE - Rostislav Gaitiukevich and Mikhail Mordasov, from Russia, push at the start of the men's two-man bobsleigh World Cup race in Igls, near Innsbruck, Austria, Saturday, Nov. 27, 2021. (AP Photo/Lisa Leutner, File)
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A South Korean court sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to five years in prison Friday in the first verdict from eight criminal trials over the martial law debacle that forced him out of office and other allegations.
Yoon was impeached, arrested and dismissed as president after his short-lived imposition of martial law in December 2024 triggered huge public protests calling for his ouster.
The most significant criminal charge against him alleges that his martial law enforcement amounted to a rebellion, and the independent counsel has requested the death sentence in the case that is to be decided in a ruling next month.
In Friday's case, the Seoul Central District Court sentenced Yoon for defying attempts to detain him, fabricating the martial law proclamation and sidestepping a legally mandated full Cabinet meeting.
Yoon has maintained he didn’t intend to place the country under military rule for an extended period, saying his decree was only meant to inform the people about the danger of the liberal-controlled parliament obstructing his agenda. But investigators have viewed Yoon’s decree as an attempt to bolster and prolong his rule, charging him with rebellion, abuse of power and other criminal offenses.
Judge Baek Dae-hyun said in the televised ruling that imposing “a grave punishment” was necessary because Yoon hasn’t shown remorse and has only repeated “hard-to-comprehend excuses.” The judge also restoring legal systems damaged by Yoon’s action was necessary.
Yoon, who can appeal the ruling, hasn’t immediately publicly responded to the ruling. But when the independent counsel demanded a 10-year prison term in the case, Yoon’s defense team accused them of being politically driven and lacking legal grounds to demand such “an excessive” sentence.
Prison sentences in the multiple, smaller trials Yoon faces would matter if he is spared the death penalty or life imprisonment at the rebellion trial.
Park SungBae, a lawyer who specializes in criminal law, said there is little chance the court would decide Yoon should face the death penalty in the rebellion case. He said the court will likely issue a life sentence or a sentence of 30 years or more in prison.
South Korea has maintained a de facto moratorium on executions since 1997 and courts rarely hand down death sentences. Park said the court would take into account that Yoon’s decree didn’t cause casualties and didn’t last long, although Yoon hasn’t shown genuine remorse for his action.
A supporter of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol shouts slogans outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs and flags outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A supporter of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol waits for a bus carrying former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs as police officers stand guard outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs and flags outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Supporters of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol hold signs outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A picture of former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is placed on a board as supporters gather outside Seoul Central District Court, in Seoul, South Korea, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
