Russian hockey chief says CAS ruling on readmission is final, as European boycott threats grow

Russian hockey says the matter is closed. Its federation insists that the ruling letting Russian teams back into international tournaments cannot be appealed.

Federation (FHR) general director Dmitry Kurbatov said the decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS, sport's top court) has come into force. He added that the FHR intends to push for it to be carried out.

What led to this?

The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) suspended Russian and Belarusian national teams and clubs from all its competitions on 28 February 2022, after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The CAS ruling now clears Russian national teams to play in IIHF tournaments again.

Several European countries reacted by threatening to boycott.

What else was said?

Kurbatov also said the IIHF could change the format of the World Championship once the Russian team is back. At the same time, the FHR urged people to hold off on predictions about when Russians will actually appear at international events.

The head of Belarus's hockey federation, Alexander Bogdanovich, said he hopes Belarus could be readmitted soon, perhaps even tomorrow. He said he believes in the Olympic Charter and expects no discrimination.