Former head coach of the Russian national team Vladimir Plyushchev spoke about the preliminary inclusion of the national team in the list of participants in the hockey tournament at the 2026 Olympics. In a conversation with socialbites.ca, he said that the International Hockey Federation (IIHF) did this only officially.
“I think this is a formality. In general, it is not a very good mine, with a not very good game. Because everyone understands very well that there must be some kind of official permission. And the fact that we were included in the list of participants without any comments – with the wave of a magic wand “You yourself understand that everything will be blocked for us at any moment. Or, on the contrary, tell us how glad they are to see us after 2026 – this is happening to them,” the expert thinks.
If accepted to the tournament, the national team will be able to compete in Quartet C along with the USA team. Russia will have a “theoretical qualifying position should the decision be made to return to tournaments under the auspices of the IIHF”.
In the spring of 2022, the IIHF decided to prevent Russian hockey players from participating in international tournaments, even with neutral status, and the organization also stripped Russia of the right to host the youth world championship at home in 2023. At the beginning of July 2022, the IIHF Disciplinary Committee rejected the Russian Hockey Federation’s request for admission to international competitions.
Previously recognized The NHL’s stance on participation in the 2026 Olympics, where Russia may play.