Russia and Belarus should remain frozen by international ice hockey fuel competitions during the 2025-26 season.
The decision of IIHF on Tuesday covers all World Championships and effectively next year in Winter Olympic Games in Italy next year, even though the International Olympic Committee has the last word.
“It is not yet certain that the Russian and Belarusian national and club teams are integrating again,” said the IIHF because “the current security conditions do not enable the necessary requirements for organizing tournaments that guarantee the security of everyone.”
The IIHF Council said the problem will be evaluated in May 2026.
The 2026 Winter Olympics are planned in Milan and Cortina for February 6th to 22nd.
Russia has won the Olympic Gold nine times in former yawn as a Soviet Union or uniform team. Russia won the silver at the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing just a few weeks before the invasion of Ukraine by Russia. Since then, Russia and Belarus have been banned by international ice hockey tournaments.
The Russian hockey federation was dissatisfied.
“Whatever the decision has now been made, the IIhf must definitely allow our team again, because without Russia the level of the World Cup is much lower” affairs.
Bure denied the security concerns of the IIHF and said that Russia had offered to organize additional security for the national team.
“In our opinion, this argument is not strong enough,” he said. “There are more than 50 Russians in the NHL.
The IOC in 2023 Russian and Belarusian of individual athletes who took part in international events after they have met some conditions, but they are banished by team events.
The 2026 Olympic Games will be back to NHL for the first time since the 2014 Sochi games.
