Ukraine’s ice hockey federation has expressed “deep outrage” at Russia being allowed to compete in international events again.
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) overturned the ban placed on Russia by the sport’s global governing body, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF).
Russia have been suspended from competing in IIHF events since the country invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and earlier this year the IIHF ruled they would remain excluded.
The Russian Ice Hockey Federation (RIHF) appealed that decision to Cas, which has upheld it following an in-person hearing at its headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.
In a statement, the Hockey Federation of Ukraine said it “respected the authority and status of Cas”.
“At the same time, we express our deep outrage at this decision,” it added.
It said the threats, which had formed the basis of the ban, had not disappeared, adding “against this background, the decision to allow Russian teams to international hockey competitions causes special outrage”.
A statement from Cas, external said that arguments made by the IIHF “citing safety, security and other concerns” were “not supported by sufficient evidence”.
Russia are now set to be part of IIHF events in the 2026-27 season, including the men’s and women’s world championships.
Ukraine’s men have qualified for the top flight world championships for the first time in 20 years after winning promotion at this year’s Division 1 tournament in Poland.
The IIHF would not confirm whose place Russia could potentially take but pointed to its statement which said: “The ruling also has significant practical implications for competitions already at an advanced stage of preparation.
“These decisions made by Cas do not consider the practical elements which cannot be implemented immediately.”
Individual athletes from Russia were allowed to compete at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy under a neutral flag, although not in ice hockey.
The IIHF expressed “disappointment”, external with the ruling.
“The IIHF disagrees with this aspect of the ruling and maintains that its decisions were necessary to protect the safety and security of all participants and safeguard the integrity of its competitions,” they said in a statement.
“While the IIHF respects the authority of Cas and will act in accordance with its ruling, the outcome does not remove the concerns that informed its assessments.”
Germany will host the men’s world championships in May and Frank Lutz, chairman of the German ice hockey federation, said: “We reject the return of Russian national teams to international ice hockey tournaments.
“Allowing Russia to participate entails significant security-related, political, and economic consequences for us as hosts. We are now evaluating the ruling together with the IIHF and will provide information regarding the next steps.”
The United Kingdom, Finnish and Czech federations also condemned the decision to allow Russia to enter teams.
Jan Cerny, secretary general of Czech Ice Hockey said he “very unpleasantly surprised” by the decision adding: “The current stance of Czech ice hockey does not change with the CAS decision. We do not agree with Russia’s participation in IIHF tournaments during the war of aggression in Ukraine.”
The chairman of the Finnish Ice Hockey Federation, Heikki Hietanen, called the ruling “in it’s entirety, incomprehensible”.
Ice Hockey UK said: “While disappointed, we respect the authority of Cas, and will analyse the decision and its potential implications for Great Britain’s national teams.”
A statement from the RIHF said it “welcomes the decision” from Cas and stated it will work with the IIHF to “facilitate the return of Russian teams to competitions”.