Twenty-eight Russian athletes have had lifetime Olympic bans overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport [Cas] and their results at the 2014 Sochi Winter Games have also been reinstated.

Eleven others had their appeals partially upheld, meaning that they will serve reduced suspensions and miss the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeonchang only.

The rulings are unlikely to go down with anyone involved in the Winter Olympics or the International Olympic Committee, as it comes as a huge blow to the IOC’s claims that a state-sponsored doping programme was used in Russia. A number of past and current athletes are likely to greet the Cas ruling with anger on the eve of the 2018 Winter Games.

Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Show all 9 1 /9 Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Lizzy Yarnold Lizzy Yarnold won Team GB’s first gold medal of the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games after dominating the women's skeleton from start to finish. She hs recently take some time away from the sport before returning with the aim of defending her title at PyeongChang 2018. Getty Images Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Jenny Jones Jenny Jones set Britain alight with slopestyle fever when she produced a spectacular display at Sochi 2014 to take Olympic bronze. having spent a winter in Tignes as a chalet maid, she took up snowboarding, quickly winning everything she entered, included three Winter X Games golds between 2009 and 2010. Getty Images Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Jamie Nicholls Jamie Nicholls became the first British male snowboarder to win a World Cup event in 2016. The Bradford-born athlete took up the sport aged seven at Halifax Ski and Snowboard centre, but by the age of 13 he was already considered one of the best UK snowboarders. At the 2014 Olympic Winter Games in Sochi, Russia, Nicholls finished sixth overall. Getty Images Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch James Woods James Woods won five consecutive British National Championships in slopestyle between 2007 and 2011. Woods suffered a hip injury in training for the 2014 Sochi Olympic Winter Games, but finished a remarkable fifth in the slopestyle. After winning the Big Air competition to take a first ever Winter X Games gold medal in 2017, the Brit went on to take Winter X Games Europe bronze in slopestyle before repeating the feat at the World Championships a week later. AFP/Getty Images Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Elise Christie Elise Christie was born in Livingston and moved to Nottingham when she was 15 in order to pursue her sporting dream. After representing Great Britain at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, Christie enjoyed the most successful season ever by a British female short track speed skater in 2012/13 - finishing the campaign ranked top in the 1000m world rankings, with two European gold medals to her name. Following three disqualifications at Sochi 2014, the 12-time World medallist will be confident of improving on her previous Olympic best result of 11th in the 500m at Vancouver 2010. AFP/Getty Images Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Eve Muirhead Eve Muirhead became the youngest ever skip to win a Winter Olympic medal when she guided Team GB to bronze at Sochi 2014 in what was her second Winter Olympic appearance. A four-time world junior champion, Muirhead has won multiple European and World senior medals – including a second gold at the 2017 European Championships – and will once again skip Team GB’s women’s curling rink in PyeongChang. AFP/Getty Images Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Dave Ryding Dave Ryding shocked the alpine skiing world when he claimed Britain’s first World Cup skiing podium for 36 years with slalom silver in Kitzbuhel in January 2017. The man from Bretherton had almost made another trip to the podium in Stockholm in the parallel slalom, but finished an agonising fourth, just 0.06 seconds off a bronze medal. Ryding competed at the Vancouver and Sochi Olympic Winter Games, finishing 17th in the slalom in Russia, and achieved his highest World Championship placing in 2017 when he came 11th. Getty Images Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Charlotte Gilmartin Charlotte Gilmartin began competing as a junior speed skater for Great Britain aged just 15, before rising through the ranks to regularly compete on the world stage. In January 2016, Gilmartin won 3000m gold and overall silver at the European Championships and added 500m bronze a year later. Getty Images Winter Olympics 2018: 9 British medal hopefuls to watch Andrew Musgrave Andrew Musgrave’s first outing at the Olympic Winter Games came at Vancouver 2010 where he finished 51st in the 15km + 15km double pursuit, 55th in the 15km freestyle race and 58th in the individual sprint. In 2014, he competed in his second Olympic Winter Games in Sochi where he qualified 27th for the individual sprint before finishing 44th in the 15km classical and 53rd in the 50km freestyle. The Dorset-born athlete finished fourth in the 50km freestyle at the 2017 World Championships – a higher placing than any previously achieved by a British Nordic skier. Getty Images

The news is also likely to trigger an angry response from Russia even though 28 of their athletes have been cleared, given that they have consistently denied running a state-sponsored doping programme and believe that the treatment they have been subjected to by the IOC is a conspiracy.

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Men's Olympic skeleton champion Aleksander Tretiakov, the current women's European and World Cup skeleton champion Elena Nikitina and Olympic cross-country gold medalist Alexander Legkov are among those who have been reinstated, while Aleksandr Zubkov, the double Olympic bobsleigh champion and Russian flag-bearer in Sochi, is among the 11 whose anti-doping rule violations have been upheld.

All 39 appeals were heard in Geneva last week with all but two athletes attending in person – though the pair were heard via video link.

Dr Grigory Rodchenkov, the former head of the Moscow anti-doping laboratory who was one of the two main accusers, has already hit out at the decision, having given evidence during the appeals via video link.

Jim Walden, lawyer for Dr Rodchenkol, issued a statement on Thursday that read: “Dr Rodchenkov testified fully and credibly at Cas. His truth has been verified by forensic evidence, other whistleblowers, and, more recently, recovery of the Moscow lab’s secret database, showing thousands of dirty tests that were covered up.

Russia's Aleksander Tretiakov is among the 28 athletes to have their bans overturned (Getty)