It was actually only a matter of time. Now it’s a done deal. Russia will not host the 2023 Ice Hockey World Championship. The International Ice Hockey Federation announced today, Tuesday, that next year’s World Championships will not be held in Russia due to the aggressive war in Ukraine. “Out of concern for the safety of all players, officials, media and fans, the IIHF has decided not to host the 2023 Ice Hockey World Championship in Russia.”
Another host is to be found during this year’s Ice Hockey World Championships in Finland (May 13-29).
As an alternative, Finland would again offer itself for the upcoming World Cup. Mainly because they want to compensate the Finns financially, since there will be no fans from Russia and this will result in a loss of income. Switzerland has taken itself out of the race as the venue. A World Cup in the Czech Republic would also be possible. The Ice Hockey World Championship 2024 is to take place there. It is quite possible that the event will be brought forward by a year.
For Russia it is the next bang. Athletes and sportspeople are already excluded from all sporting events. The organizers of the Wimbledon tournament recently announced that Russian and Belarusian athletes are not allowed to compete. This means that number two in the world rankings, Daniil Medvedev, will also be missing. The two-time Grand Slam tournament winner Victoria Asarenka from Belarus will not serve at the classic lawn either.
