The lawyer called the consequences for Canada because of the refusal of visas of the Russian team
After the Russian hockey teams were admitted to international tournaments for the first time since 2022, Canada announced its intention to refuse visas to Russian athletes to participate in competitions on its territory
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) may recommend that the federations do not hold tournaments in Canada because of the refusal of visas to Russian athletes. This was stated by “RBC Sport” Chairman of the Bar “Nikolskaya Consulting” Alexey Panich.
“It was a precedent [when the CAS recommended not to host a tournament in a country where visas were not issued to certain athletes].” In 2025, Indonesia did not let Israeli gymnasts into the World Cup. The IOC then advised international federations not to host tournaments in Indonesia until its government guarantees access for all athletes. If the IOC is consistent, the same standard should apply to Canada, Panich said.
The lawyer stressed that any such decision by the IOC would be advisory rather than binding: “The question of whether the IOC would apply this recommendation to Canada is more political than legal in nature.”.
After the suspension of Russians from international competitions due to the military operation in Ukraine on October 30, 2026, CAS ordered the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) to allow Russian teams. As a result, Russia was included in the number of participants of the World Youth Championships, which will be held from December 26 to January 5 in Edmonton and Red Deer, Canada.
However, a number of European countries announced their intention to boycott tournaments involving Russia. Canada has also said it will not issue visas and its sports minister, Adam van Cooverden, has vowed to stop Russians from entering. According to TSN, IIHF and Hockey Canada have already received notifications about the non-admission of Russian hockey players.
Similar statements that will not be issued visas to Russian athletes, received from the Czech Republic and Norway.
Russian President Vladimir Putin called for “consistently and calmly” to seek the admission of athletes, and his spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the situation “a dead end”.
