A total of 18 Russian riders have been approved as neutrals before the upcoming UCI Cycling World Championships ©Getty Images

A total of 32 Russian and Belarusian riders have reportedly been permitted to compete under a neutral banner by the International Cycling Union (UCI).

The information has been obtained by Russia's official state news agency TASS which reports that the number comprises of 18 Russians and 14 Belarusians.

Among the Russian riders gaining neutral status includes Ivan Smirnov, a gold medallist in both the individual pursuit and team pursuit at the 2019 European Games in Minsk.

Gleb Syritsa, ]art of the gold medal-winning team pursuit side at Minsk 2019, also features on the admitted list along with European bronze medallists Tamara Dronova and Vlas Shichkin according to TASS.

The other Russian cyclists are Alexei Medvedev, Daria Ermolova, Alena Ivanchenko, Daniil Kazakov, Daria Dyatlova, Sergey Malnev, Vyacheslav Ivanov, Ilya Savekin, Ilya Shchegolkov, Daniil Zarakovsky, Ivan Seledkov, Mark Kryuchkov, Valeria Lyubimova and Yegor Igoshev.

Tamara Dronova, centre, who represented the Russian Olympic Committee at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, is among those to gain neutral status by the UCI ©Getty Images
Tamara Dronova, centre, who represented the Russian Olympic Committee at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, is among those to gain neutral status by the UCI ©Getty Images

It was also reported by TASS that no further Russian cyclists had been blocked from returning to international competition after Alexei Obydennov, Anastasia Voinova, Maria Novolodskaya and Savely Laptev were denied neutral status last month.

The admission of the 32 riders from Russia and Belarus means they are in contention to compete at the UCI Cycling World Championships - where all disciplines will be held together in the same place for the first time and due to be held in Glasgow in August.

The UCI has updated its stance after the International Olympic Committee ruled in March that athletes from Russia and Belarus should be allowed to compete under a neutral banner if they are not openly in support of the war in Ukraine and are not linked to the military.