You may have noticed athletes labelled with AIN at this year’s Olympics.
AIN stands for Athlètes Individuels Neutres, which is French for Individual Neutral Athletes.
Athletes competing as AIN are either from Russia or Belarus.
AIN at the Olympics
Athletes competing under the AIN Flag must comply with a strict set of rules to remain eligible to compete.
In a statement, the IOC said: “No flag, anthem, colours or any other identifications whatsoever of Russia or Belarus will be displayed at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 in any official venue or any official function.”
The AIN athletes will compete under a flag designed by the IOC.
AIN athletes can only compete in individual events, not team events.
If they win a gold medal, an anthem without words and commissioned by the IOC will be played instead of the Russian or Belarusian national anthems.