Anton Gerashchenko, an adviser to the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs, announced on Twitter that Androshchuk had died at the age of 22.

"Volodymyr Androshchuk, Ukrainian track and field athlete, member of the national team, died in combat near Bakhmut," he said.

"RIP, Volodymyr.

"We keep losing our best people."

Androshchuk was a national under-20 decathlon champion in 2019.

World Athletics said it had been unable to confirm that Androshchuk has died, but underlined that the impact of the war in Ukraine had led to its decision on the non-participation of Russia and Belarus at its events.

"While we have not yet been able to verify this terrible news, the entire reason that World Athletics suspended Russian and Belarusian teams and athletes from our competitions last year is because of the impact of Russia’s war on Ukrainian athletes and their families and supporters," a spokesperson told insidethegames.

"Our hearts go out to all the Ukrainian soldiers, civilians, athletes and their families who are fighting and dying to protect their country."

World Athletics President Sebastian Coe, who is also an International Olympic Committee (IOC) member, has said that Russian and Belarusian athletes should only return in circumstances where it is "palatable and fair".

The Russian Athletics Federation has separately been suspended since 2015 because of a doping crisis, although appears to be edging closer to reinstatement.

Bakhmut is a Ukrainian-held city in Donetsk Oblast, in the east of the country.

Russian forces have recently intensified their attacks and attempts to take control of the city, which lies mostly in ruins.

By early last month, only between 7,000 and 15,000 of Bakhmut's pre-war population of 80,000 remained in the city.

Another Ukrainian athlete in figure skater Dymtro Sharpar, who competed at the Lillehammer 2016 Winter Youth Olympics, was killed during fighting in Bakhmut earlier this week - the first to be listed by the authoritative Olympic database Olympedia as a direct casualty of the fighting.

The IOC has this week sparked anger in Ukraine - including from the country's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba - with its move towards reintegrating athletes from Russia and Belarus.

Referencing support from consultation calls, the IOC said it would continue to "explore a pathway" for athletes from both countries to compete under "strict conditions" of neutrality, potentially opening the door to their presence at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Zelenskyy has argued "neutrality does not exist", and invited IOC President Thomas Bach to visit Bakhmut.

The National Olympic Committee of Ukraine has organised an Extraordinary General Assembly for Friday (February 3) to discuss whether to boycott Paris 2024 if Russian and Belarusian athletes are allowed to compete.

The IOC claims that a "vast majority of the participants" in recent consultation calls support its view on Russian and Belarusian inclusion in sport, and argues "no athlete should be prevented from competing just because of their passport".

It has vowed to provide support to ensure that Ukraine can send a "strong team" to Paris 2024 and Milan Cortina 2026.