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Russian hockey federation decries 'discriminatory' decision by IIHF to extend Russia's ban

"The RHF also points out that the IIHF Council meeting was organized without the participation of Russia’s representatives and considers the [IIHF] decision to be discriminatory," the statement noted

MOSCOW, February 13. /TASS/. The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) made their decision to extend the suspension of Russia’s national teams from all its internationally-sanctioned events because of lobbying efforts on the part of federation members who feared the competition, the Russian Ice Hockey Federation (RHF) said in a statement to TASS on Tuesday.

The IIHF Council ruled 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.

"The RHF believes that the decision to suspend the Russian national teams has been lobbied for by a number of representatives from national ice hockey federations who are afraid of the added competition in international play," the statement reads.

"The RHF voices its disappointment regarding the decision made by the International Ice Hockey Federation to extend the suspension of Russian teams from international tournaments of the IIHF system for the 2024/2025 season," the statement continued.

"The RHF also points out that the IIHF Council meeting was organized without the participation of Russia’s representatives and considers the [IIHF] decision to be discriminatory," the statement added.

Earlier in the day, IIHF President Luc Tardiff told TASS that the world’s governing body of ice hockey would decide whether to allow the Russian national ice hockey team to participate in the 2026 Winter Olympics either in February or March of 2025.

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.

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