Countries that threaten to boycott the World Hockey Championship because of the admission of Russians and Belarusians risk being left with nothing: they may receive a technical defeat, and the tournament will not interest anyone. The deputy of the State Duma, the former boxing world champion Nikolai Velayev stated this in a conversation with Izvestia. According to him, the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes from major tournaments is increasingly becoming a political issue. In the past, restrictions were imposed by international federations, but now some are gradually starting to allow athletes to compete, including under the national flag. The deputy believes that a massive boycott of games could harm the organizers of the world championships. In his opinion, the absence of leading teams will reduce the interest of viewers in the competition, and with it the income from the sale of television rights. "Today it is very difficult to talk about how it will be in practice," Valuev noted. He emphasized that the Russian side actually has no influence on possible restrictions, since it is impossible to independently obtain foreign visas or force other teams to go on the ice. "Therefore, now it is not the ball, but the puck on their side," said the deputy. Valuev also expressed the opinion that decisions to boycott competitions are often made not by the athletes themselves, but by state authorities or sports federations. According to him, most athletes prefer to find out who is stronger directly on the sports fields, rather than participating in political conflicts. In the past, Sweden, Latvia, Finland, Norway and Denmark refused to play against the Russian hockey team in international tournaments. Canada then announced that it would not issue visas to the Russian youth team to participate in the World Cup. At the same time, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ordered the International Hockey Federation to admit Russia to international competitions from the 2026/27 season. More IZ RU news in max.

Countries that threaten to boycott the World Hockey Championship because of the admission of Russians and Belarusians risk being left with nothing: they may receive a technical defeat, and the tournament will not interest anyone. The deputy of the State Duma, the former boxing world champion Nikolai Velayev stated this in a conversation with Izvestia. According to him, the exclusion of Russian and Belarusian athletes from major tournaments is increasingly becoming a political issue. In the past, restrictions were imposed by international federations, but now some are gradually starting to allow athletes to compete, including under the national flag. The deputy believes that a massive boycott of games could harm the organizers of the world championships. In his opinion, the absence of leading teams will reduce the interest of viewers in the competition, and with it the income from the sale of television rights. "Today it is very difficult to talk about how it will be in practice," Valuev noted. He emphasized that the Russian side actually has no influence on possible restrictions, since it is impossible to independently obtain foreign visas or force other teams to go on the ice. "Therefore, now it is not the ball, but the puck on their side," said the deputy. Valuev also expressed the opinion that decisions to boycott competitions are often made not by the athletes themselves, but by state authorities or sports federations. According to him, most athletes prefer to find out who is stronger directly on the sports fields, rather than participating in political conflicts. In the past, Sweden, Latvia, Finland, Norway and Denmark refused to play against the Russian hockey team in international tournaments. Canada then announced that it would not issue visas to the Russian youth team to participate in the World Cup. At the same time, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ordered the International Hockey Federation to admit Russia to international competitions from the 2026/27 season. More IZ RU news in max.