MOSCOW, February 13. /TASS/. The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) will decide whether to allow the Russian national ice hockey to participate in the 2026 Winter Olympics either in February or March of 2025, IIHF President Luc Tardiff told TASS on Tuesday.

The IIHF Council announced on Monday to uphold the suspension of the national ice hockey teams from Russia and Belarus from all IIHF-sanctioned events for the 2024/2025 season. This decision bars, in particular, the Belarusian national squad from taking part in the August 2024 qualifiers for the 2026 Olympics in Italy.

"As usual we take decision year by year. Russia is not concerned by TQO [Olympic qualifying points] like Belarus because of the ranking. The case of their participation to the Olympic will be decided Feb-March 2025," IIHF chief Tardiff told TASS.

Last October, the IIHF announced that Russia could play in the same group with the United States at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Italy if Russia is cleared to participate in the event.

According to the IIHF’s October 2023 chart of teams for the group stage competitions at the 2026 Olympics, Russia and the United States will both be in Group C, with the other two teams to be determined later after qualifying.

Group A consists of Canada, Sweden, Switzerland and Olympic host Italy. Group B currently lists Finland, Germany, the Czech Republic with the final member of the foursome being announced following the qualifiers.

The 2026 Winter Olympic Games will be held in the Italian cities of Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo between February 6 and 22, 2026.

The International Ice Hockey Federation Congress, hosted by Finland’s Tampere on May 27, 2022, voted to exclude the national teams of Russia and Belarus from the 2023 World Championship, and the two teams were likewise sidelined at the 2022 Ice Hockey World Championship, due to the developments in Ukraine.

IOC sanctions against Russia

On February 28, 2022, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) issued recommendations to international sports federations to bar athletes from Russia and Belarus from taking part in international tournaments, citing Moscow’s special military operation in Ukraine as the reason.

Following the IOC’s recommendations in late February 2022, the majority of global sports federations decided to bar athletes from Russia and Belarus from all international sports tournaments.

In late March, 2023, the IOC recommended to permit individual athletes from Russia and Belarus to take part in international sports tournaments, but only under certain conditions. Specifically, athletes from the two countries should not be "actively supporting" Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine and must compete under a neutral status. Russia and Belarus were also banned from participating in international team events.