Western countries are strengthening entry restrictions against Russian athletes' return to the international sports stage.
According to Reuters and AFP, the Finnish government announced on the 12th (local time) that it will only allow Russian citizens to enter the country if they perform work essential to Finland's national interests, regardless of whether they hold a Schengen visa.
Sports activities are not included in this exception, which blocks the ability of Russian athletes to compete in sporting events held in Finland.
Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen said, "As long as Russia's war of aggression continues, there is no reason for Russian athletes to enter Finland. Their entry could jeopardize Finland's international relations."
The Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained that this measure, which will take effect from the 16th, applies not only to players of the Russian national team but also to players playing as neutral players.
Accordingly, Russian athletes will not be able to participate in the Cross-Country Ski World Cup, which will begin in Ruka, the northernmost part of Finland, on the 27th and 28th. Russian athletes, who were considered strong medal contenders, are expected to be blocked from participating in the Figure Skating World Championships to be held in Tampere, Finland in March next year.
In relation to this, the International Skating Union (ISU) told the Associated Press, "Unfortunately, our position is that athletes should not be punished for the actions of their governments as conflicts continue in many parts of the world."
Norway, another Nordic country, also announced on this day that it would block athletes from Russia and its ally Belarus from competing in domestic games.
In a statement, the Norwegian government explained that visa rules for Russian and Belarusian citizens are already strictly enforced. However, as international sports federations have recently eased restrictions, it has become more likely that athletes and support staff from both countries will visit Norway to participate in competitions.
Accordingly, the government announced that it would instruct immigration authorities and police to deny entry to Russian and Belarusian professional athletes and support personnel visiting Norway to participate in sports competitions.
The Norwegian government added that the Russian elite sports community has close ties with Russian authorities and cannot be viewed separately from the war in Ukraine, adding that strengthened visa restrictions will soon come into effect.
Norway is scheduled to host the cross-country skiing World Cup in Trondheim in December. According to this measure, Russian and Belarusian athletes who have been approved by the International Ski Federation (FIS) may also be unable to participate in the competition.
Finland and Norway's decision follows the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) last month accepting an appeal from the Russian Ice Hockey Federation, opening the possibility for the Russian team to return to the World Championships.
Before the two countries, Canada announced on the 11th that it would not allow visas to be issued to Russian players for the youth ice hockey championship to be held in the country next month. The Swedish government is also said to be considering whether it can refuse to issue visas to athletes from Russia and Belarus.
In addition, ice hockey federations from various European countries, including Finland, Norway, the Czech Republic, Denmark, and Sweden, are in the position of boycotting matches against Russia if Russia is allowed to participate in the Ice Hockey World Championships to be held in Germany in May next year. Turku, Finland, which is hosting the 2027-2028 Ice Hockey World Junior Championships, declared that it would give up hosting the tournament altogether if the Russian team participates.
