Three prominent Russian gymnasts, including the reigning women's all-around world title holder Angelina Melnikova, have been denied visas by the Netherlands, preventing them from competing at next week's World Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Rotterdam.
The Russian Gymnastics Federation (RGF) confirmed that Viktoria Listunova and Anna Kalmykova are also among the trio affected. The RGF has criticised the decision as "discrimination" and a "violation" of fair competition principles.
Russia intends to appeal the decision to both the World Gymnastics governing body and the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The championships are set to take take place from 17-25 October.
This marks the second consecutive year that the World Championships have been impacted by visa refusals, following Israeli gymnasts being denied entry to Indonesia for the 2025 championships.