THE CAS AD HOC DIVISION DOES NOT HAVE JURISDICTION TO CONSIDER THE APPLICATION FILED BY ALEKSANDR BOLSHUNOV (RUSSIA)
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has rejected an appeal from Russian cross-country skier Aleksandr Bolshunov regarding his exclusion from the 2026 Winter Olympics, ruling that the application was filed too late for its special Olympic division to consider.
The CAS Ad hoc Division in Milan announced its first decision on Wednesday, concluding that it lacked jurisdiction to hear the case against the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS).
Bolshunov, a three-time Olympic champion, sought to overturn a Dec. 24, 2025, decision by the FIS Individual Neutral Athlete Eligibility Review Panel (AINERP), which denied him neutral status for the upcoming Winter Games in Milano Cortina.
Filed on Jan. 28, 2026, the application was deemed outside the operational window of the CAS Ad hoc Division. The specialized panel is established to resolve legal disputes only during the Olympic Winter Games or within the 10 days immediately preceding the Opening Ceremony. Therefore, any dispute brought to this specific division must have arisen by Jan. 27, 2026, at the latest.
“Consequently, the case could not be entertained as it was filed outside the jurisdiction of the CAS Ad hoc Division Milano Cortina 2026,” the court said in a statement.
Bolshunov, 29, was attempting to secure a spot to compete as an Individual Neutral Athlete (AIN). While CAS previously ruled that some Russian and Belarusian athletes could participate as neutrals in FIS qualification events, the FIS panel determined that Bolshunov did not meet the criteria for neutral status, which includes strict neutrality regarding the ongoing war in Ukraine.
The ruling likely brings to an end a four-year saga for Bolshunov, who dominated the 2022 Beijing Games, winning three gold medals. Following the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, FIS, like many international sports bodies, implemented restrictions on Russian athletes. Although the International Olympic Committee (IOC) allowed a pathway for individual neutrals, athletes must clear eligibility hurdles to compete.
The CAS Award will be published on the court’s website unless the parties involved request confidentiality. The 2026 Winter Games are scheduled to officially open on Feb. 6 in Italy.
The Ad hoc Division, established to ensure swift legal decisions during the Olympic period, generally requires that all internal remedies within a sports federation be exhausted before an appeal is brought before it. This case was dismissed solely on procedural grounds regarding the timing of the filing.