OREANDA-NEWS. Rene Fasel, the head of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) said that the transfer of the 2021 World Cup from Minsk to some another city is not being considered now.

Fasel said that "the main option is to host the World Championships in Minsk and Riga in 2021 under the conditions pointed by the IIHF. At the moment, other options are not being considered."

In December, the IOC banned the participation in all events of the organization, including the Olympic Games, to the President of Belarus, the head of the National Olympic Committee (NOC) Alexander Lukashenko, his son Viktor and Dmitry Baskov, who heads the country's Ice Hockey Federation.

Then Fasel explained that the International Olympic Committee cannot influence this IIHF's decision on the venue of the contest.

Shortly before this, the IIHF proposed to change the location of the tournament, and to move it from the capital of Belarus to another city due to the political situation in this country connected with the August presidential elections in the country.

The pandemic also threatens the holding of competitions in Minsk. "The situation with the coronavirus in Belarus does not meet the international standards that the World Cup has to comply with, but the government has promised to do everything according to the IIHF rules," Fasel said.

Fasel said last week that the Council of the International Ice Hockey Federation will make the final decision on the venue for the World Championship at its meeting in late January.