NOVOSIBIRSK, May 19. /TASS/. The Russian Ice Hockey Federation (RIHF) has filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against the refusal by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) to return Russian players to international tournaments, RIHF Director General Dmitry Kurbatov said in an interview with TASS on Tuesday.
Kurbatov told TASS in March that the RIHF had sent applications to the IIHF Disciplinary Committee requesting the immediate reinstatement of the Russian national teams to international competitions.
"Our application has been reviewed. The Disciplinary Committee refused us, so we appealed to the CAS," he said.
In December 2025, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Executive Board issued recommendations that allowed athletes in international federations from Russia and Belarus to participate in youth disciplines under the national flags and anthems. This recommendation applied to both individual and team sports. Numerous international sports federations followed the proposal.
"The IIHF reviewed this recommendation and decided against granting the approval. Therefore, we are suing the organization on this issue also in the CAS," Kurbatov added.
In February 2022, the IIHF suspended Russia and Belarus from participation in international competitions over the developments in Ukraine.
The Russian national ice hockey teams were also barred from the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Italy and IIHF President Luc Tardif told TASS in 2025 that the decision was made by the IOC and the IIHF had no say in this.