Canada benches Russia: hockey nations refuse to share the ice over Ukraine war

Canada is done sharing the ice. Prime Minister Mark Carney said Tuesday that Russian skaters won't compete at next month's world junior championship, joining a fast-growing bloc of hockey nations refusing to face Russian teams while the war in Ukraine grinds on. The statement from Ottawa followed a wave of similar announcements from European federations earlier the same day.

The trigger was Friday's ruling from the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which lifted the International Ice Hockey Federation's ban on Russian teams after appeals from Russia's hockey federation. The CAS panel said safety and security concerns behind the ban “were not supported by sufficient evidence.” The IIHF had barred Russian teams since Moscow's full-scale invasion in February 2022, extending the punishment every year since.

Finland fired first, asking other nations Monday to push back. By Tuesday, the federations of Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Latvia and the Czech Republic had all lined up behind it — and Norway was out front with its own statement. “Our position that Russia should be excluded from all international championships as long as the war in Ukraine continues … remains unchanged,” Norway's federation posted, adding that it was protecting the safety of players, staff and their families, who could face “significant security risks.”

Carney was blunt about the reasoning. As long as Russia and Belarus back what he called an illegal, unjustified and horrific war, he told reporters, none of their athletes will be competing for their countries in Canada. Ukraine's foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, thanked the Europeans for refusing to share the ice, posting on X that if CAS lacks a moral compass, hockey can still show its values — and urging nations to deny visas to Russian players too.

The standoff now lands on host cities. With Russians cleared to play under the CAS decision, organizers worldwide have to decide whether to stage their tournaments as planned. The world junior championship is set to start 26 December in Alberta, where Canada's refusal means Russian skaters won't be lacing up.

For now the coalition is only growing, and the ice is getting lonelier for Russia. What started as one federation's protest has turned into a coordinated front spanning North America and northern Europe — with more countries still weighing where they stand.