Belarus stripped of ice hockey world championship
Minsk has been stripped of the right to host the 2021 Ice Hockey World Championships, said the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF).
The Federation's statement notes that this decision was made for security reasons.
The 2021 World Cup was to be held in Minsk and Riga from May 21 to June 6, 2021. However, due to the political situation in Belarus, a number of European countries have spoken out against holding competitions in the country.
Earlier, Czech automobile manufacturer Skoda refused to sponsor the Hockey World Cup, if it is held in Belarus.
"We are proud to have been a partner of the IIHF World Championships for 28 years. But we also respect and support human rights. Therefore, Skoda will refuse to sponsor the 2021 Ice Hockey World Championship if it is confirmed that Belarus will host this competition," the company’s statement reads.
On January 15, another sponsor of the championship, NIVEA MEN, announced its refusal to participate:
"NIVEA stands for respect, unity and opposes all forms of discrimination and violence. Seeing the current situation, we decided that the NIVEA MEN would not sponsor the 2021 World Cup if it was held in Belarus. We have already informed IIHF of this and will closely monitor the current discussions," the company said.