The Russian Problem

When Russia won their case in front of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), I think everyone expected that what would follow would be messy and a headache. With Russia still inside Ukraine's borders and looking to continue its attempted takeover of that country, sports should literally be the last thing people have on their minds, but the Russians seem hellbent on ensuring that they get their way in the hockey world. More news has filtered down today from various countries and organizations, so let's get settled in for more international hockey insanity thanks to all the stupidity seen so far.

Announced today by Germany, they will work no longer drop the Men's World Championship tournament despite pressure to do so because German Ice Hockey Federation chief executive Frank Lutz is now being forced to look at the bigger picture. According to reports filed today, "[a] withdrawal would come with financial penalties and could damage Munich's bid for the Olympics" in the summer of 2036.

This now puts Germany in a position to do what Canada did in rejecting visas for Russian athletes if they truly want to keep the Russians out of the IIHF Men's Hockey Tournament in May. The German government hasn't weighed in on the situation yet, but it seems clear that the IIHF will "take a diplomatic route following the CAS ruling, which Lutz welcomes" despite the number of sponsors who have threatened to abandon the tournament and the number of countries who will boycott games against Russia. Germany, as it stands, clearly has a problem on their hands in hosting this hockey tournament.

Germany, however, will have to consider their next moves carefully if they are worried about losing the potential opportunity to host the Olympics. The IOC will certainly look down on Germany's application if they start imposing political bans on athletes after CAS made it clear that the IIHF had no basis for that ban, so Germany's next decision as to what do about the Russians will be significant. My feelings about the Olympics aside, Germany's in a quandary.

On top of this, the IIHF officially reinstated Russia for the 2027 IIHF calendar, and that has forced Norway out of the 2027 IIHF World Junior Championship taking place in Alberta. Because Norway is the lowest-seeded team at the event, the decision was made to push them back to the Division-1A tournament taking place in Estonia in May. Russia, if they replace Norway, would be in the same Pool-B setting as Canada, Czechia, Latvia, and Switerland, and we already know that at least two of those countries will boycott games.

On top of that, the Canadian government has ensured that not one Russian athlete representing Russia will compete on Canadian soil at the event, and they will go so far as to ban visas for those athletes. Norway Ice Hockey Federation General Secretary Petter Salsten has made it clear that Norway opposes this move as the IIHF awarded Russia the tenth seed, and added that "the Norwegian association expects further formal clarifications and directives from the IIHF within the coming days to resolve the administrative gridlock."

Of course, Germany also has to determine what they plan on doing if teams boycott, but they also will have Ukrainian athletes there as Ukraine had qualified for the 2027 IIHF Men's World Championship. Clearly, both Russia and Ukraine cannot be at the tournament together due to the potential problems that may cause, and it was a week ago that Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated that the CAS decision "stains the ice with Ukrainian blood". He's not wrong.

Because the CAS decision is binding and the IIHF has to follow the ruling, the problem will now literally fall on each host country's political powers to determine whether or not Russians can compete within their borders. This could lead to further diplomatic problems between countries when it comes to supporting Ukraine on the world stage, so the IIHF would be treading on very thin ice if it starts talking about penalizing nations for withdrawing as hosts.

Clearly, there is a lot of red tape and pitfalls to navigate long before any games are played, but the 2027 IIHF World Junior Championship is less than two months away. If Canada keeps Russia from competing, it seems likely Norway would jump back into the event. Beyond that tournament, though, everything seems up in the air as Germany will have to make a decision. Do they follow their hearts in hoping to secure the Olympics or do they stand on principle with Ukraine?

Again, I go back to Nitya Prakash's wise words that state, "If you can abandon your principles for convenience, or social acceptability, then they are not your principles. They are your costume." You can argue that Germany has a good reason, both civically and financially, to allow the Russians to play, but it's a hard path to walk after being Ukraine's ally in their war. Therein lies Germany's toughest decision.

For all the "keep politics out of sports" people, having Russia reinstated for IIHF events plunges hockey directly into politics. Canada has made its stance clear about Russia. What will Germany do with both Ukraine and Russia having invitations to their party in May?

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!