IIHF President Fasel Postpones Visit To Minsk

• 8.12.2020, 14:32

He was supposed to meet with Lukashenka.

Head of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) René Fasel and the organization's secretary general Horst Lichtner were to visit Minsk on December 8 to meet with Aliaksandr Lukashenka. The visit was to take place at the request of the IIHF.

It was planned to discuss “security issues related to the preparation of the tournament, accusations against the head of the Ice Hockey Federation of Belarus Dzmitry Baskau, the current situation with COVID-19 in the country, as well as steps taken to safely conduct the tournament together with Latvia,” Fasel said in a statement published on IIHF website.

The visit did not take place, as Fasel and Lichtner contracted the coronavirus. For the next 10 days, both will stay at home in isolation.

The tournament will most likely be moved from Belarus. The option of holding the tournament only in Latvia is being considered. There was also information about the possible transfer of the championship to Russia.