Russia remains a provisional member of the International Biathlon Union at least till the next congress scheduled for 2020

On September 7, 2018, delegates of the 13th Regular International Biathlon Union Congress, taking place in Poreč, Croatia, voted against the Russian Biathlon Union’s application for full IBU membership, having agreed with Canada’s arguments against.

As reported by TASS, the Canadian official proposed to exclude the Russian application from the congress agenda due to the fact that the Russian Anti-Doping Agency didn’t comply fully with the code of the World’s Anti-Doping Agency. This position was supported by Denmark and opposed by CIS countries. The voting result was 29 votes against Russia’s full membership versus 20 votes in favour of it.

As a result, the Russian Biathlon Union remains a provisional member of the International Biathlon Union. Provisional members have a right to send athletes to international championships, although they cannot claim to hold those championships in their countries. Being ineligible to vote at regular congresses, provisional members are not in line for nominating candidates for any elected positions within the International Biathlon Union.