IIHF 'taking the necessary steps' to comply with Russia return ruling as Belarus stays out

The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) announced on Saturday that Belarus will not participate in its upcoming world tournaments, but the federation is 'taking the necessary steps required' to comply with the Court of Arbitration for Sport's (CAS) ruling to allow Russia to play.

The CAS ruled last week that Russian teams can compete in the upcoming men's and women's world championships, overturning the IIHF's decisions to exclude them from its competitions.

The World Junior Championships next month in Alberta, Canada, will be the first tournament affected by the decision.

Hockey Canada and Prime Minister Mark Carney said last week that Russians would not be allowed to play in next month's World Juniors.

In a statement, the IIHF said: 'While the IIHF continues to disagree with the decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) concerning Russian participation in IIHF Championships, we are taking the necessary steps required by the CAS ruling and reviewing what conditions would need to be met to safeguard our Championships, protect the organization's financial stability and secure the long-term future of international ice hockey.'

The federation added: 'The IIHF must work within the applicable framework while upholding its responsibility to preserve international competition and protect the sport as a whole.'

The IIHF said it is exploring all available avenues, including opening discussions with all affected member associations, including the Russian Ice Hockey Federation, to identify a constructive way forward that serves the interests of global ice hockey.

NHL legend Wayne Gretzky discussed the potential ban of Russian athletes from world tournaments, including next month's World Juniors in his home country of Canada.

Russia did not compete in Olympic hockey earlier this year, the first since 2014 that had NHL players. Nor was it included in the NHL's 4 Nations Face-Off. Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, four days after Olympic competition ended that year.

Russian President Vladimir Putin put out a statement through the state-run outlet TASS calling out organizations that are preventing Russian athletes from competing for their country, saying they 'have not honored the commitments they once made, and they continue to enforce restrictions against Russian sports that are not based on law, but are instead highly politicized.'

Putin said: 'This constitutes a clear and gross violation of the law and of judicial rulings — and, by extension, a violation of the very institutions of democracy. That is precisely how this should be interpreted.'

Sweden, Finland, the Czech Republic, Norway, Latvia and Denmark came out with statements signing up for a boycott of games against Russia as long as the war in Ukraine is ongoing. Germany, the host of the 2027 men's world championships, also suggested backing out if Russia was allowed to play.

STRAUSS, a workwear company that is a top sponsor of the world championships next year, threatened to walk away after Finland announced on Monday it was rallying other nations to refuse to play Russia.

If Russia makes the trip next month, it will be its first time playing in the World Juniors since 2021. It has not won gold since 2011.