Prime Minister Mark Carney says athletes representing the two countries will remain barred from competing in Canada for as long as Russia and Belarus support the war in Ukraine.
Canada will not allow hockey players representing Russia or Belarus to compete at the World Junior Championships in Alberta, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on 3 November 2026. He said the restriction on athletes representing the countries in Canada would last as long as Russia and Belarus support the war in Ukraine, which he called illegal, unjustified and horrific.
The decision follows a ruling last week by the Court of Arbitration for Sport allowing Russians to compete in International Ice Hockey Federation events, which Canada had condemned, The Moscow Times said. The federation had suspended Russia from all levels of competition after Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
Russian ambassador to Canada Oleg Stepanov called the decision regrettable and accused Carney’s office of bringing politics into junior hockey, which he said should unite rather than divide.
Separately from Canada’s restriction on competition, the national hockey federations of Norway, Denmark, Sweden and the Czech Republic said on 3 November that they would refuse to play Russia at the 2027 men’s World Championship in Germany.
The 2027 World Junior Championship is scheduled for Edmonton and Red Deer, Alberta, from late December to early January.
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