The information, relayed by the TASS agency, comes from the Russian Rowing Federation: a small delegation of Russian rowers will take part in the World Rowing Championships in Belgrade, Serbia (September 3-10) early next month. It will consist of just four athletes, all of whom will be competing in the single sculls: Alexander Vyazovkin (pictured above) and Alexander Yakovlev in the men’s event, and Kira Yuvchenko and Anastasiya Lyubich in the women’s event. They will take part in the competition under neutral status, in accordance with the recommendations of the IOC Executive Board. The discipline’s world governing body, World Rowing, had decided to suspend Russian athletes from the beginning of March 2022, shortly after the outbreak of the conflict in Ukraine. Last April, however, it followed the lead of the IOC, announcing that it had set up a working group to study the conditions for the return of Russian and Belarusian athletes to international competitions. The 2023 Worlds in Belgrade will be the first opportunity for rowers to qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
