Global skating body bans Russia, Belarus from hosting international events

The International Skating Union (ISU), the sport’s governing body, says that Russia and Belarus are banned from hosting international competitions over Moscow’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. 

In a statement on Monday, the group said that it is looking for a replacement host for the upcoming Rostelecom Cup, which is scheduled to take place later this year. 

“Until further notice no International Competitions shall be held in Russia and Belarus. Consequently, the Rostelecom Cup 2022 in Figure Skating will not be included in the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series of the season 2022/23,” the group said in a statement. 

The federation also prohibited Russian and Belarusian skaters from competing in its events, which include the ISU Championships. 

Multiple other sporting federations and organizations have implemented bans on Russia and Belarus from hosting and competing in their annual events.  

The All England Lawn Tennis Club, the group that organizes and hosts Wimbledon, announced last week that it has banned Russian and Belarusian players from competing in this year’s contest due to Russia’s unprovoked attack on Ukraine. 

Several tennis players, such as Elina Svitolina and Novak Djokovic, have criticized the tournament’s decision to impose the ban, with the Ukrainian Svitolina saying that the tournament should make an exemption for Russian and Belarusian players who publicly condemned the ongoing conflict.

During an appearance on “The Tennis Podcast,” Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) President Steve Simon told the hosts that Wimbledon’s ban violates Grand Slam rules, warning that a “strong reaction” will come soon. 

“We don’t have the same jurisdiction over the Grand Slams as we do our own sanctioned events. We have precedents … where these situations may have occurred where fines and tournament sanctions have been imposed,” Simon said on Thursday. 

“We need to sit down with our tournament, our player councils and I suppose our board and see where everything’s at. I do think that you’ll see some strong reactions that will come from us, but what those are and how far they’ll go is still to be determined,” Simon added.