The International Olympic Committee has announced that Russian and Belarusian athletes will not be allowed to take part in the opening ceremony at the Paris Olympics.
Instead, an "opportunity will be provided for them to experience the event," the IOC said in a statement - likely watching on along with thousands of fans.
Taking place on July 27 (New Zealand time), the opening ceremony will see thousands of athletes travel on boats down the River Seine toward the Eiffel Tower, instead of the normal parade of teams inside a stadium.
A decision on whether Russian and Belarusian athletes will be allowed to take part in the closing ceremony on August 12 will be taken "at a later stage".
The decision will take into consideration "that it is not teams that enter the Closing Ceremony, but all athletes jointly together," the statement said.
The athletes from these countries who qualify for the Games will also compete as Individual Neutral Athletes without their flags and anthems following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Any medals won by neutral athletes will not be counted as a collective group in the overall medals table, while a replacement flag in jade green and a specifically written anthem will be used for their medal ceremonies.
Russia and Belarus have already been banned from team sports at the Olympics
The IOC has laid out a strict vetting procedure for any individual athletes from those countries who want to be granted neutral status.
"Athletes who actively support the war will not be eligible to be entered or to compete. Support personnel who actively support the war will not be entered," said the IOC.
"Athletes who are contracted to the Russian or Belarusian military or national security agencies will not be eligible to be entered or to compete. Support personnel who are contracted to the Russian or Belarusian military or national security agencies will not be entered."
The IOC project that 36 neutral athletes with Russian passports and 22 with Belarusian passports will qualify for Paris 2024.
