Ice hockey chief calls for Russia & Belarus return

The head of the International Ice Hockey Federation says he would like Russia and Belarus to return to international competition “as soon as possible”.

The Russian and Belarusian national teams have been banned from competing since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

Speaking while attending the ice hockey at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, Luc Tardif said: “We want as soon as possible Belarus and the Russians back.

“We try to see what’s going on. Every day you watch the news to hope that something will come better.”

Tardif, 72, who was elected president of the IIHF in 2021, added that he would like to see those nations back in the fold “because first it will mean that the World Championships will be a little bit better”.

He added: “We follow the recommendation of the IOC (International Olympic Committee). We try to keep away politics from our competition, but sometimes that’s not so easy.”

Tardif said steps were already being taken to allow under-18 teams from Russia and Belarus back into competition.

“We still try to organise a comeback because that’s the family of IIHF,” he added.

“Bring them too early, it’s not going to be good for our competition and the question of security is always there.

“We’re trying to keep them around and organised to make sure that when the time will come, we will be ready to bring back the family together.”

Both countries were suspended by the IOC for violating the Olympic Charter, meaning they cannot compete at the Winter Olympics as national teams.

However, some individual athletes from those countries have been allowed to participate in Milano-Cortina under a neutral flag, although not in ice hockey.

A men’s team from Russia won the 2018 Winter Olympics ice hockey gold and took silver in 2022, but on both occasions they were not allowed to compete as Russia because the country had been banned over the government-sanctioned doping scandal that marred the 2014 Games in Sochi.

The 2018 winners took part as the Olympic Athletes from Russia, while the 2022 side did so as part of a team called the Russian Olympic Committee.

The IOC said Heraskevych had been barred from participating after refusing to adhere to its ‘athlete expression’ guidelines.

Heraskevych, 27, called the IOC’s decision the “price of our dignity”, while Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said the IOC’s stance played “into the hands of aggressors”.