The Russian Olympic Committee believes that Russian athletes should have the right to participate in all disciplines at the 2026 Olympic Games, including the hockey tournament. The ROC decided to challenge the IOC initiative.
Previously, President of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Luc Tardif said that the Russian national team will not be allowed to participate in the Olympic tournament in 2026. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) said it had upheld the recommendations regarding the non-admission of Russian teams to the Olympics.
"The suspension of the Russian hockey team from all international competitions began back in 2022 and is legally unrelated to the decision of the International Olympic Committee to suspend the Russian Olympic Committee in 2023.
In this regard, the ROC lawyers are currently working on options for challenging the actions, or rather inaction, of the IOC in international courts. Because the obstacles referred to by the IOC have been eliminated, and the organization has been officially notified about this.
Our position is simple, there are no legal grounds for the suspension of the ROC, all the rights of our National Olympic Committee should be restored, and Russian athletes should have the right to participate in all Olympic disciplines in which they have the right to participate in accordance with sports selection principles, including hockey tournament, " the press service said. The Russian Olympic Committee.
Meanwhile, the International Olympic Committee reacted to the information about the non-admission of the Russian national ice hockey team to the 2026 Olympics.
"The recommendation of the IOC Executive Committee of March 2023 regarding teams of athletes with a Russian passport remains in force. It is based on the fact that, by definition, a group of individual neutral athletes cannot be considered a team. We take note that the IIHF has confirmed that it will follow this recommendation.
This recommendation was made after consultations with interested international federations and other participants in the Olympic Movement," the organization's press service told the Championship portal.
In addition, the information noted that the position on the suspension of the ROC's activities is based on the fact that the country is participating in a special operation on Ukraine.
Two-time Olympic champion Boris Mikhailov commented on the decision of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) not to allow the Russian national team to participate in the 2026 Olympic Games.:
"I think it's necessary to disperse this IIHF to the fucking hair dryer! I am outraged by the behavior of the head of the organization Tardif. He's from Canada, they have quite a lot of Ukrainians living there. Apparently, the diaspora is putting pressure on him. And why are the Europeans against us? So we take away their place."
State Duma deputy Dmitry Svishchev also reacted to the sad news:
"Unfortunately, our fears have come true, and our hopes have been dashed. Of course, there were few chances. The main hope now is the new IOC president. We hope that Coventry will start a fair policy and set a new era for the development of the Olympic Committee. So that the policy is carried out only in the interests of sport."
And here's what the voice of Russian biathlon Dmitry Guberniev thinks about this:
"International sports officials are trying to save face and pretend that they make decisions, but in fact politicians make decisions. Therefore, if there are no drastic changes in the non-sporting fields, then there should be no changes in the sports fields for Russia either. Perhaps there will be some point moments of tolerance, but no more.
With the current situation, the Russian delegation in Milan will not just be smaller than the Paris delegation, but it may not exist at all. And if it does, it's definitely less than in Paris.
Again, with major policy changes, everyone can replay in one second, and from Hundreds of people will go to the Olympics in Russia, dozens for sure, we must be aware of this. But so far there are no prerequisites for this."