IOC to keep Russia out of 2026 Games: Reports

People walk near Olympic rings near the village of Anterselva where the Biathlon will take place during the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in northern Italy, Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Alessandro Trovati)

The president of the International Ice Hockey Federation told reporters that the International Olympic Committee plans to exclude Russia from the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Luc Tardif was quoted Sunday by HockeyNews.se and Hokej.cz on the topic of Russian participation in future events -- chiefly the next Winter Games in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

“The IOC is the organizer -- we only deal with the competition (the hockey tournaments) itself,” Tardif said. “We have been pressuring them to make a decision, one way or another, because we’re getting closer to the Olympics and we need to know.”

“Recently they asked us to send them a schedule without Russia, so that’s where we are. The official statement is pending but the IOC has told us that they are informing the Russian Olympic Committee that they are not participating in the Olympics.”

Russia was barred from the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris following the country’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Individual athletes from the country were allowed to compete, but not under their country’s flag.

The official IOC announcement has yet to be made. Belarus, which is allied with Russia, is also expected to be kept out of the Olympics again.

Russia hosted the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi and has won 46 gold medals across six Winter Games. The Soviet Union won 78 gold medals.

The Winter Olympics begin in February, and much of the preparation is already underway. The men’s and women’s ice hockey teams have already been selected and divided into their groups for the competition, without Russia and Belarus.

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