Pavel Kulizhnikov is among the Russian proposals ©Getty Images

Speed skaters Pavel Kulizhnikov and Denis Yuskov have reportedly been included in a preliminary list of Russian athletes submitted to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for potential inclusion in a neutral team at Pyeongchang 2018. 

A provisional list of around 350 athletes has supposedly been sent to the IOC by the Russian Olympic Committee.

According to the country's Deputy Prime Minister and ex-Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko, a Working Group has been set-up to determine athletes managed by ROC vice-president Stanislav Pozdnyakov.

"The preliminary list of athletes has been sent to the IOC, while the details of athletes’ admission are still being clarified," Mutko was quoted as saying in the Russian media.

The names will now be studied by an Invitation Review Panel chaired by France's Valérie Fourneyron.

It comes after the IOC ruled earlier this year that Russian athletes can only compete neutrally under the Olympic Athletes from Russia (OAR) banner at the Games next year.

Decisions made by the Invitation Review Panel must then be rubber-stamped by a separate IOC panel chaired by Executive Board member Nicole Hoevertsz.

It remains to be seen how stringent the admissions process is.

A total of 32 Russian athletes have so far been disqualified from the Olympics for life for their involvement in a "systemic manipulation" of the anti-doping system at Sochi 2014.

Denis Yuskov is reportedly among the athletes submitted to the IOC
Denis Yuskov is reportedly among the athletes submitted to the IOC

All of these cases are due to be appealed at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

The list submitted so far reportedly includes three-time world champion Yuskov after he was cleared of wrongdoing by an IOC disciplinary panel Monday (December 18).

He also served a four-year ban for taking marijuana from 2008.

Fellow speed skater and six-time world champion Kulizhnikov is also included, Sport-Express report, despite being engulfed in two separate doping cases in his career.

He served a two-year ban after a failure for methylhexanamine before a separate suspension was lifted last year after a failure for meldonium.

A previous IOC attempt to ban Russians who had returned from doping bans from future Olympic Games was ruled unsuccessful by CAS before Rio 2016.

They hope the Sochi 2014 cases will be considered different as the sanction directly relates to the Olympic Games. 

The full list of names submitted has not been published.