"Rene Fasel Runs Into a Big International Scandal"

Due to the boycott of the leading countries, the Ice Hockey World Championship in Belarus will be canceled by itself.

On January 11, Lukashenka met with the President of the International Ice Hockey Federation Rene Fasel, who flew to Minsk on purpose to discuss the prospects of the World Championship. Competitions should be held in Belarus and Latvia. However, the Belarusian community, the opposition, the Latvian side, as well as a number of other participants in the championship have repeatedly spoken out against holding this event in Belarus due to the brutal suppression of peaceful actions against the falsification of the presidential elections on August 9, 2020.

Media manager Dmitry Navosha on the air of Current Time explained what fate awaits the World Ice Hockey Championship and other international sporting events in the country.

- For about the same reasons conditional Hitler so wanted to hold major international tournaments, such as the Olympics, during the period of his establishment as one of the European leaders and the person who is reviving his native Germany.

Lukashenka is now in an absolute, total international blockade. He was not recognized by any of the neighboring countries of Belarus as president, including even Ukraine and the EU countries, except Russia. He is not recognized either in the States, Europe, the European Union, Canada, or in the UK, almost anywhere. He is trying to cut through at least some kind of window to Europe. And in this sense, a corrupt sports federation, where the president of this federation has been in office for 26 years (what a coincidence with Aliaksandr Lukashenka!) - Rene Fasel came to power in world hockey in 1994. This is such a chance for him - to cut a window to Europe, break this blockade, and show that at least someone recognizes him.

- Several countries have already announced a boycott of the World Cup if it is held in Minsk. In particular, the head of the Finnish federation said today that the national teams of Finland and Sweden might declare a boycott. In that case, where do you think the World Cup will take place and in what line-up?

- The Sports Solidarity Fund, which from the moment of the first repressions against Belarusian athletes was created and aimed at retribution to those people who persecute Belarusian athletes and Belarusians in general, had no illusions that Rene Fasel was somehow especially sensitive to such words as "human rights," "freedom," that he is somehow touched by 178 political prisoners in Belarus or 30 thousand people who went through prisons.

We harbor no illusions, and we understand that this is such a hockey sinecure, which has long been based on corruption, that Fasel likes to come to Minsk to see Lukashenka. Now he is spending an evening, I think, quite pleasant for himself, at the Lukashenka's residence. And he had many such evenings.

We will force him; the Belarusian sports community, addressing the world, will force Fasel to cancel this tournament, despite his desire to hold it in Minsk anyway, to the delight of Lukashenka. Since October, the Belarusian Sports Solidarity Fund has at least been informing all European hockey clubs, European hockey federations, European politicians in English in very detailed newsletters about everything that happens in Belarus.

- In a conversation with the head of the federation, Lukashenka shifts responsibility to him. Still, why is it so important for Lukashenka to host the World Ice Hockey Championship in Belarus?

We already see that Denmark practically directly declares that they will not go to the World Championship in Belarus. Today Finland made a similar statement. It says that at least all the northern countries - these are four Scandinavian countries - do not consider it possible to hold the World Championship in Minsk under a dictatorship. My guess is that after Germany, Canada, and the United States join them, the World Cup will simply be canceled by itself.

- Several more international sports events are planned in Belarus for 2021. What will happen to them? Will they be canceled, transferred?

- Most of them will be canceled simply for the reasons that this is "dancing on bones," this is something that is unacceptable. Sport, of course, is outside of politics, but it is not outside of morality, not outside of some common human basic principles. And it is no coincidence that this is precisely why the International Olympic Committee was the first to respond to the requests of Belarusian athletes, who appealed to the violation of their rights and human rights in general in the country, and punished the Belarusian National Olympic Committee, including the head of the Belarusian ice hockey federation by the name of Baskau, who today, along with Lukashenka, also hugged Rene Fasel. This man, as you know, took part in the murder of one of the protesters, Raman Bandarenka, and so far no criminal case has been opened or taken place.

In the photo (from left to right): Artem Karkotsky - player of the UAE national ice hockey team, Rene Fasel - President of the International Ice Hockey Federation, Dzmitry Baskau - Head of the Fedhockey games of Belarus in the VIP box at the Minsk Arena. It is assumed that Baskau was involved in the death of a Minsk resident Raman Bandarenka, who was beaten to a coma by law enforcement officers in civilian clothes.

It seems to me that Rene Fasel is generally running into a big international scandal and a growing number of questions about how such a federation can exist in general and how he can hold the post of leader of world hockey until now, being so unprincipled.

- Is Lukashenka becoming a toxic character not only for politicians but also for athletes?

- You can say so. I don't know how much the attempt by Lukashenka and his entourage to gather a bunch of athletes who are for Lukashenka in response to the mass protest of Belarusian athletes got into your information space. And a kind of abstract letter was written, where there is no direct support for Lukashenka, but there is something "for both yours and ours." In general, this is a response to an open letter from Belarusian athletes who were against Lukashenka and for fair elections. Athletes are forced there by coercion; they are threatened with the army for not signing this letter, breaking the contract, and so on. And people shy away from it like from fire. When they are recorded as the signers of this letter, they refute it, say: "Friends turn away from me," and so on.

The Ice Hockey World Championship is to be held from May 21 to June 6 in Minsk and Riga. However, in September 2020, Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins appealed to the International Ice Hockey Federation with a proposal to postpone the tournament due to the current situation in Belarus. On the same days, the European Parliament adopted a resolution recommending to deprive Belarus of the championship. American congressmen and parliament members of several European countries addressed an open letter to the International Ice Hockey Federation. They also asked to deprive Belarus of the right to host the Ice Hockey World Championship in 2021. Some participating countries have threatened to boycott if Minsk will host the championship.

In November, Latvia announced that it was ready to host the World Cup itself, and on November 16, for an indefinite period, it banned the head of the Belarusian Ice Hockey Federation Dzmitry Baskau, the head coach of the hockey team Aliaksandr Lukashenka, as well as the famous Belarusian kickboxer Dzmitry Shakuta, hockey player of the Bastion amateur team where Lukashenka's eldest son, Viktor, also plays. They are suspected of involvement in the beating of the deceased Minsk resident Raman Bandarenka.