The International Badminton Federation (BWF) announced in a press release: its Council has taken the decision to suspend the membership of the Russian federation (NBFR). The reason is purely political: the Russian body is accused of having flouted the rules of the BWF by integrating territories which belonged to Ukraine (Donetsk, Kherson, Luhansk and Zaporozhye). With this suspension, badminton is only following the IOC, whose executive board suspended the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) for the same reasons. But, reassuring news for Russian players, the suspension of their national federation will not exclude them from international competitions. They will be able to register directly for events on the international calendar under neutral status, without going through their federation. As a reminder, the BWF had initially decided not to reinstate Russian and Belarusian athletes, thus adopting a position contrary to the IOC's recommendations, before changing its mind and opening its doors to them under conditions of neutrality from February 26, 2024.
