Russia threatens Canada and Germany over ice hockey exclusion

The Russian Ice Hockey Federation threatened Canada and Germany with compensation claims and sanctions if they refuse to admit Russian teams, saying it would demand that competitions be postponed.

Federation president Vladislav Tretiak, speaking after a presidential sports council meeting in Moscow on Thursday, said: "we will demand compensation, enforce the postponement of the competitions". He added that a team which does not take the ice receives a forfeit loss and is sanctioned, and called on the IIHF to either allow Russia to participate or move or cancel the championship, or impose sanctions on Canada.

Canada confirmed on Wednesday that it would not allow Russian players to play in the IIHF World Junior Championship, which starts on December 26 in Alberta. Secretary of State for Sport Adam van Koeverden said Canada's position was "unequivocal" and that there could be no return to business as usual while Russia continues its war of aggression against Ukraine.

The dispute follows a Court of Arbitration for Sport ruling last month that the security concerns the IIHF cited for barring Russian teams were not sufficient; the governing body pledged to work to comply with the decision. Norway said it had been bumped from the World Juniors and informed that Russia would take its place. Several other national associations said they had received a revised schedule and would not play against Russia. The IIHF has not confirmed the change.

Germany is watching closely because it hosts the IIHF World Championship in Gelsenkirchen, Mannheim and Düsseldorf from May 14. With several nations refusing to play Russia and major sponsors threatening to pull out, a German government spokesman described hosting under those conditions as "effectively impossible".

Germany has ruled out the Canadian approach. Ronald Rauhe, minister of state for sport, said refusing visas was "not a solution" for the German ice hockey federation (DEB) or for hosting a World Championship anywhere, while backing the DEB's wish to stage the tournament as planned. He added that Germany's energy should go toward "helping sport—and ice hockey in particular—find a solution," which would entail excluding Russia from the World Championship.

German officials also weigh Munich's chances of hosting the Summer Olympics in 2036, 2040 or 2044. The International Olympic Committee recently lifted its sanctions on Russian athletes and the suspension of the Russian National Olympic Committee, and is due to decide in the next few weeks whether Munich advances to the next stage of the bidding process.