The International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) has issued guidelines for Russian track-and-field athletes seeking "permission" to compete in the Rio Olympics in August.
Individual Russian athletes "who can clearly and convincingly show that they are not tainted by the Russian system because they have been outside the country and subject to other effective anti-doping systems" could apply to compete in international competitions, the IAAF said in a June 23 statement.
But it insisted that they would do so "not for Russia, but as a neutral athlete."
Last week, the IAAF upheld a ban preventing Russia's track-and-field team from competing in international competitions over widespread doping.
The organization has been at odds with the International Olympic Committee, which says Russian athletes who are proven drug-free have no choice but to compete as part of Russia's Olympic Committee.