(Reuters) – Finnish ice hockey players playing in the Russia-based Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) and other leagues in Russia next season will not be selected for the national team, the Finnish Ice Hockey Association said on Tuesday.
The move follows Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which Moscow describes as a “special military operation”.
“The position of the Finnish Hockey Association is that players playing in Russia next season will not be able to play for the national team,” it said in a statement.
Finnish club Jokerit also withdrew from the KHL in late February, days after the invasion.
As many as 31 Finnish players were on KHL rosters according to the league’s website but only a handful remain following Jokerit’s withdrawal and several players choosing to leave their clubs in the wake of the invasion.
Finland’s men’s ice hockey team won Olympic gold in Beijing in February, beating the Russian Olympic Committee team in the final.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
