International Ice Hockey Federation Suspends Russia, Belarus From All Levels of International Play

The International Ice Hockey Federation has suspended Russia and Belarus from every age category in international play until further notice, the governing body announced Monday.

The IIHF levied some of the most severe sports-related sanctions against Russia and its allies thus far, joining many other sports federations and leagues in taking a stand against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Most notably, the 2023 World Junior Hockey Championship, which was slated to be played in Novosibirsk and Omsk, will also be pulled out of Russia, the IIHF said.

A new location for the international event has not yet been determined.

“The IIHF is not a political entity and cannot influence the decisions being taken over the war in Ukraine,” Luc Tardiff, the IIHF’s president, said in a statement. “We nevertheless have a duty of care to all of our members and participants and must do all we can to ensure we are able to operate our events in a safe environment for all teams taking part in the IIHF World Championship program.”

The IIHF said it has “not left out the possibility” of further actions that could impact Russia‘s ability to enter teams in other events, but that it hoped for “a swift and peaceful resolution to the war.”

The decision currently denies Russian teams from entering the following events:

• 2022 IIHF Continental Cup
• 2022 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 World Championship
• 2022 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship
• 2022 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women’s Word Championship
• 2022 IIHF World Junior Championship
• 2022 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship

Shortly after the IIHF revealed its sanctions, the NHL announced that it plans to  suspend its relationships with Russian business partners. The league also condemned the war in the Ukraine and called for “a peaceful resolution as quickly as possible.”

“The National Hockey League condemns Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and urges a peaceful resolution as quickly as possible,” the statement read. ”Effective immediately, we are suspending our relationships with our business partners in Russia and we are pausing our Russian language social and digital media sites. In addition, we are discontinuing any consideration of Russia as a location for any future competitions involving the NHL.

”We also remain concerned about the well-being of the players from Russia, who play in the NHL on behalf of their NHL clubs, and not on behalf of Russia. We understand they and their families are being placed in an extremely difficult position.”