Believe it or not, there are athletes in the 2024 Paris Olympics who are competing without a country's flag behind them. Some with homes wrapped up in the ongoing war in Ukraine will not be barred from this year's Games, but they will be forbidden to wear their colors.
Other athletes, such as certain groups of refugees, are competing without a country's flag to represent them, as well, so these athletes are not alone. Fortunately, they will have each other to fill the sense of camaraderie that being on a team generally offers.
A mysterious acronym, AIN, is being used to refer to the group of athletes coming from areas influencing the war in Ukraine. Find out what it stands for and who exactly are those representing the three letters below.
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What does AIN stand for at the Olympics?
AIN is the International Olympic Committee's country code for Individual Neutral Athletes. It stands for the French name Athlètes Individuels Neutres, which translates to Individual Neutral Athletes.
A country code is a three-letter code used by the IOC to identify each group of athletes competing in the Olympic Games. Athletes in this delegation are banned from using the neutral Olympic flag and Olympic anthem but will have their own flag.
Russian athletes formerly competed under the "ROC" country code, which stood for "Russian Olympic Committee."
Which country's athletes are competing under AIN at the Olympics?
AIN athletes are eligible Olympic competitors with Russian or Belarusian passports who are barred from representing their respective nations. This decision is a reversal from the 2022 Olympics where both countries were wholly banned due to Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.
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Strict eligibility conditions were issued based on recommendations by the IOC. There are a number of qualifications to be considered a Individual Neutral Athlete, including, "Athletes who actively support the war will not be eligible to be entered or to compete."
Athletes must qualify through the International Federation's existing qualification systems to be eligible to compete. As of June 15, 14 Russians and 11 Belarusians across five sports were announced by the IOC.
Who are the athletes competing under AIN?
Russian Athletes
| Athlete | Sport (Men's/women's) |
| Aleksei Korovashkov | Canoe/kayak (M) |
| Zakhar Petrov | Canoe/kayak (M) |
| Olesia Romasenko | Canoe/kayak (W) |
| Tamara Dronova | Road cycling (W) |
| Alena Ivanchenko | Road cycling (W) |
| Gleb Syritsa | Road cycling (M) |
| Anzhela Bladtceva | Trampoline gymnastics (W) |
| Evgenii Somov | Swimming (M) |
| Ekaterina Aleksandrova | Tennis (W) |
| Mirra Andreeva | Tennis (W) |
| Pavel Kotov | Tennis (M) |
| Daniil Medvedev | Tennis (M) |
| Roman Safiullin | Tennis (M) |
| Diana Shnaider | Tennis (W) |
| Elena Vesnina | Tennis (W) |
Belarusian Athletes
| Athlete | Sport (Men's/women's) |
| Hanna Tserakh | Road cycling (W) |
| Ivan Litvinovich | Trampoline gymnastics (M) |
| Viyaleta Bardzilouskaya | Trampoline gymnastics (W) |
| Georgiy Gurtsiev | Taekwondo (M) |
| Siuzanna Valodzka | Weightlifting (W) |
| Yauheni Tsikhantsou | Weightlifting (M) |
| Abubakar Khaslakhanau | Wrestling (M) |
| Mahamedkhabib Kadzimahamedau | Wrestling (M) |
| Yahueni Zalaty | Rowing (M) |
| Tatsiana Klimovich | Rowing (W) |
| Darya Chuprys | Shooting (W) |
| Aliaksandra Piatrova | Shooting (W) |
| Uladzislau Kravets | Canoe/kayak (M) |
| Yuliya Trushkina | Canoe/kayak (W) |
| Alina Zmushka | Swimming (W) |
| Ilya Shyamanovich | Swimming (M) |
| Anastasiya Shkurdai | Swimming (W) |