--- title: "Sybiha Urges Boycott of Russia's Participation in World Junior Ice Hockey Championship" description: "Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has called for a boycott of Russia's participation in the 2027 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship and demanded that the IIHF revoke its decision to include the Russian team instead of Norway." date: 2026-11-08T17:53:54.591Z lang: en url: https://xab.info/en/posts/sybiha-urges-boycott-russia-world-junior-championship tags: [ukraine, russia, ice-hockey, iihf, world-junior-championship, sports-diplomacy, norway, belarus] author: "Inna Kinsheva" publisher: "XAB.info" --- # Sybiha Urges Boycott of Russia's Participation in World Junior Ice Hockey Championship ![Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha makes a statement regarding the boycott of Russia](https://xab.info/media/2026/11/08/sibiga-prizval-boykot-rossii-v-chempionate-mira-po-hokkee/sibiga-prizval-boykot-rossii-v-chempionate-mira-po-hokkee-1.webp) ## Key Points - Sybiha called the IIHF's decision to include Russia in the 2027 World Junior Championship schedule instead of Norway a "disgrace to the sports community" - The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry demanded the reversal of the federation's decision and called for a boycott of Russia's participation, as well as the cessation of international funding for the IIHF - The minister stated that sports must not be used to legitimize an aggressor and Russia must remain outside competitions until the war ends - At the same time, the IIHF barred Belarus from the 2027 World Ice Hockey Championship, highlighting the federation's selective decisions Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has issued a sharp statement addressing the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), calling on the international community to boycott Russia's participation in the updated schedule for the 2027 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship. According to the head of Ukrainian diplomacy, the federation's decision to include the Russian national team instead of Norway is a "disgrace to the entire sports community" and effectively turns sports officials into accomplices to war crimes. The statement was published on the minister's personal page on the social network X and reported by the Ukrainian media outlet RBC-Ukraine. ### "Norwegian Players Earned Their Place" Sybiha emphasized that Norwegian hockey players earned the right to participate in the tournament solely through their athletic merits, and depriving them of this spot in favor of a country waging an aggressive war, as he put it, is unacceptable. "Norwegian players earned their place through athletic merits. Depriving them of this spot for the sake of a country waging an aggressive war is a disgrace to the entire sports community," the minister stated. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry officially demanded that the IIHF overturn its decision and expressed full support for the Norwegian side. ### Call for Boycott and Cessation of Funding In his appeal, Sybiha called on the international community not only to boycott Russia's participation in the championship but also to halt international funding for the IIHF in connection with the adopted decision. "The ice must not become a platform for Russia to break the ice with the civilized world," he stressed. The minister added that sports should never be used to legitimize an aggressor and that Russia must remain outside international competitions as long as the war against Ukraine continues. ### Context: Precedents and Parallels Sybiha's statement is not the first in this series. Previously, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister had already expressed concern over the decision of the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding the admission of Russian hockey to international events, stating that admitting Russians "is effectively a legalization of Russia's aggression." Meanwhile, as RBC-Ukraine notes, the IIHF demonstrates a selective approach: in the same year of 2027, the national teams of Belarus were barred from participating in the World Ice Hockey Championship, creating a contrast with the decision on Russia and intensifying criticism from Kyiv. ### Broader Diplomatic Background The speech on the hockey topic fits into the broader course of Ukrainian diplomacy aimed at increasing international pressure on Russia. In particular, in October 2026, Sybiha publicly called on the European Union to use frozen Russian assets to protect and rebuild Ukraine, citing Russia's record military budget for 2027, which, according to his data, amounts to about 180 billion euros. "The higher the price for Moscow becomes, the sooner peace will come," the minister summarized, linking sports isolation to the overall containment strategy. ## Fact-Check & Sources - [Сибига призвал бойкотировать участие России в чемпионате мира по хоккею](https://www.rbc.ua/ukr/news/sibiga-zaklikav-boykotuvati-uchast-rosiyi-1794155589.html) - Primary source: Sybiha's statement on his X page, reported by RBC-Ukraine. Contains direct quotes from the minister, a demand to cancel the IIHF decision, a call for a boycott and cessation of funding. Mentions the CAS decision on Russian hockey and the exclusion of Belarus from the 2027 World Championship. - [Замороженные активы РФ: Сибига призвал ЕС передать их Украине](https://zn.ua/POLITICS/zamorozhennye-aktivy-rf-sibiha-prizval-es-peredat-ikh-ukraine.html) - Used exclusively as context to demonstrate the general course of Ukrainian diplomacy regarding pressure on Russia. Contains no information about the IIHF hockey decision. ## FAQ ### What exactly happened to the schedule of the 2027 World Junior Ice Hockey Championship? According to the statement by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) included the Russian national team in the updated schedule of the 2027 World Junior Championship, taking the spot previously allocated to Norway. Kyiv called this decision "disgraceful" and demanded its cancellation. ### What specific demands did the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry make to the IIHF? The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine demanded the cancellation of the decision to include Russia in the tournament schedule, called for a boycott of the Russian team's participation, and insists on cutting off international funding for the IIHF due to the adopted decision. ### Why did Norway lose its place in the schedule? According to Sybiha's statement, the Norwegian team, which he said earned participation through athletic results, was displaced from the schedule in favor of Russia. However, the exact mechanism and reason for displacing Norway are not disclosed in the provided sources. ### What happened to Belarus in the same tournament? RBC-Ukraine reports that the IIHF barred the national teams of Belarus from the 2027 World Ice Hockey Championship, prohibiting their participation in tournaments. This decision contrasts with the admission of Russia and is mentioned in the context of criticizing the federation's selectivity.