The head of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Rene Fasel spoke about the meeting with the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko. The sports functionary is quoted by Blick.
Fazel called it a mistake to hug Lukashenka during the meeting. “I have to admit it. Everything was well-intentioned, but everything went wrong. I had to hide for several days. The storm that followed was unusually violent, ”said the IIHF President.
Fazel and Lukashenko met in January 2021. The parties discussed the organization of the World Championship, which was to be held in Minsk and Latvia. After meeting with the President of Belarus, Fasel was criticized.
On January 18, Belarus was deprived of the right to host the World Cup. The reason was the difficult political situation in the country. The tournament was hosted by Latvia. The national team of Canada became the world champion, beating Finland in the final with a score of 3: 2. Bronze medals were won by the US team, which defeated Germany - 6: 1.