Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) have asked international sports federations to exclude Russian and Belarusian athletes in the past 24 hours.

The Australian Cycling Federation has supported these decisions and has stated that at this stage the Russian and Belarusian national teams will not be allowed to compete in the UCI Road World Championships scheduled to be held in Wollongong in September The UCI is still reacting to the IOC's decision, and has asked the Russian Gazprom-Rusvelo team and the future of other Russian athletes has not been decided.

In previous announcements, the IOC Executive Board had urged against holding sporting events in Russia and Belarus, where the invasion took place.

The latest statement added the Ukraine Solidarity Fund, withdrew Olympic medals from Russian officials, including President Putin, and included a recommendation that international sports federations and event organizers not allow Russian or Belarusian athletes or officials to compete.

This stance was quickly supported by the Australian National Committee.

"We all want peace and Russia to withdraw from Ukraine immediately," AOC CEO Matt Carroll said in a statement.

"We also call for the withdrawal of Australian athletes and officials from any sporting event in which Russian or Belarusian athletes or officials may participate.

The AOC said it is writing to its member associations to inform them of this position and to ascertain which sports may be affected by this recommendation.

Australia does not appear to be planning to send a cycling team to any of the events excluded by the recommendation. However, if things do not get back on track in the coming months, Russian and Belarusian athletes and officials will likely be excluded from the Wollongong World Championships, which will be held September 18-25.

"AusCycling supports the IOC and AOC decisions regarding the Russian and Belarusian events and national teams," AusCycling responded to Cyclingnews questions.

"After reviewing the competition schedule, there are no events that our athletes were scheduled to participate in in either country.

"The only national event that teams from these countries may participate in is the UCI Road World Championships scheduled to take place in Wollongong in September. We will continue discussions with the UCI and other relevant authorities, but at this stage, consistent with the approach of the IOC, the AOC and the rest of the Australian sporting community, no national teams from Russia or Belarus will be allowed to compete."[21

The Road World Championships, to be held in Wollongong from September 18-25, is the first international road cycling event scheduled in Australia since January 2020.