The Olympic committees of five Nordic nations have backed calls for the ban on Russian and Belarusian athletes to be upheld for the Paris 2024 Games.

In a joint statement the Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, Swedish and Danish committees said: “Now is not the right time to consider their return.”

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has said Russians and Belarusians may be allowed to compete as neutrals, but Ukraine has threatened to boycott the Paris Olympics if that plan goes ahead.

Last week, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Poland all voiced their opposition to the inclusion of athletes from Russia and Belarus, who were banned following the former’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.