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International Skating Union (ISU) Council meeting will be held on June 9-11, it may be a decision was made on the admission of Russian and Belarusian athletes to international competitions. Sport explains how skaters from Russia can get to the world's top competitions and when this can happen.
When the ISU last spoke about the potential admission of Russia to the international level, there were two potential dates — June or October. At this time, meetings of the council of the organization are scheduled, which should determine the fate of Russian skaters in the upcoming season.
At the moment, it is not known for certain whether the members of the council plan to discuss this issue at the next meeting — June 9-11. However, it is critical for us that the ISU does not delay. If the board members decide to postpone the discussion until October, the Russians are almost guaranteed not to be able to compete at the international Grand Prix.A safety cushion in this matter can serve as special quotas reserved for Russian athletes if they are allowed to start. Earlier, the general director of the FFKKR, Alexander Kogan, said that the ISU had already allocated them for our juniors, however, as mentioned above, if the situation with the admission is not resolved in June, they will burn out.
According to , at one time the ISU considered the option of providing reserved quotas for Russians and for the adult series. Now it is difficult to say what decision was made on this matter, but in any case we will find out the result at the upcoming council, at which we must approve the distribution of the Grand Prix stages. Theoretically, there is a chance to see empty cells set aside for Russian skaters in the application protocols.At the moment, ISU is dominated by negative sentiments about Russian athletes at competitions, which makes it unlikely that they will be admitted to the Grand Prix stages. Now the union reacts rather sharply to everything in which one can see a trace of support for Russia from the international community. For example, the creation of the private club Global Skating Academy, co-founded by former ISU Vice President Alexander Lakernik, was received with hostility. It is known for certain that some representatives of major European federations even wrote about this to Benoît Lavoie, who replaced Lakernik as ISU vice-president in figure skating, in order to get an official reaction on this issue.
And all because there are two names among those involved in the creation of the club — a former member of the ISU technical committee, Belgian Rita Sonnekeyn (in a number of media she was listed as an active member, which has not been true for a year already) and vice-president of the Austrian federation Evelyn Rossoukhi-Schneider . In Europe, they did not appreciate such a step on their part, despite the fact that the club cannot be called entirely «Russian». And they didn’t appreciate it so much that the Belgians even wondered if Sonnekain, a respected judge at the national level, by the way, should be deprived of the position of team leader at the 2023 World Cup.
Given this, it is difficult to admit the thought that at the nearest council there will be a large number of people who want to support the admission of our athletes. And yet, globally, the hope for the participation of Russian skaters in the upcoming season remains, albeit not in the form in which we would all like.
According to , we are talking about participation in the European and world championships. The interviewed sources agreed that the theoretical admission of adult skaters from Russia (for juniors, most likely, there will be a separate conversation) for the Grand Prix series is unlikely — the reputational costs are too high. But at the October Council, the ISU could already consider the possibility of the Russians playing in a neutral status at the main starts of the season. Yes, in a neutral status and almost certainly with some restrictions, but nonetheless.This is probably why the ISU, in its last official commentary, mentioned meetings in June and October. Because the October Council, no matter what dates it takes place, will almost certainly not be able to influence the distribution of Russians in the Grand Prix stages (unless we are given reserved quotas), but it’s quite possible to make a decision on the World and European Championships.
But will figure skaters from other countries join them? There is an opinion in the international environment that yes. However, a representative of one major European national federation was not so categorical in a personal conversation: “There will probably be boycotts at big competitions. cause harm to their own athletes».
However, Russia has already prepared for any decision from the ISU. The competition calendar for the next season is scheduled and approved — the stages of the Russian Grand Prix will remain (at the same time as the international ones), the show program tournament is postponed almost to the dates of the European Championship, and the Russian Grand Prix Final will be held in March, as well as world championship.