Germany should publicly rule out Russian participation at the 2027 Ice Hockey World Championship, according to an opinion article published by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. The tournament is due to be held in Düsseldorf and Mannheim in May 2027, and the article argues that the government should not let its bid to host the 2036 Olympics stand in the way of taking a clear position.
The commentary says Russia has gained a potential route back into tournaments run by the International Ice Hockey Federation after a panel at the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled in its favour. It describes this as part of a wider effort by Moscow to return Russian athletes to international sport, despite Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The article raises the prospect of Russian players receiving visas to compete in Germany and questions whether Ukraine’s team would be expected to share the tournament with them. It argues that allowing Russia to participate would be deeply inappropriate.
Several countries have already indicated that they would not compete against Russian teams or allow them to enter for tournaments on their territory, the commentary says, naming Finland, Canada, Latvia, Sweden and the Czech Republic. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was quoted as saying Russian players would not be at the upcoming under-20 world championship in Alberta.
The article notes that German officials have not made an equally explicit statement. It argues that hosting Russian players while seeking Olympic Games hosting rights would undermine the credibility of Germany’s bid, which the federal government is pursuing with the German Olympic Sports Confederation for Munich 2036.
Sources: FAZ.