Lithuania Bids To Co-host Hockey Champs After Belarus Ban

Lithuania on Thursday offered to step in as co-host with Latvia of the 2021 ice hockey world championships after Belarus was stripped of its role

Vilnius, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 21st Jan, 2021 ) :Lithuania on Thursday offered to step in as co-host with Latvia of the 2021 ice hockey world championships after Belarus was stripped of its role.

Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte said holding the event in the two Baltic states, would be "much more convenient under the conditions of the pandemic".

"Lithuania has the required infrastructure," she said in a statement after talks with International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) head Rene Fasel.

Ice hockey's global governing body on Monday stripped Belarus of the right to co-host the event with Latvia due to safety concerns over political unrest and the Covid-19 pandemic.

The move came after the Belarusian opposition and EU states called to punish authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko, a keen hockey player, in response to a crackdown against pro-democracy protesters.

Belarus authorities dismissed it as a "groundless decision", saying it set a precedent for using sport competitions as an instrument "to please the interests of political demagogues".

The IIHF said it would evaluate the possibility of moving to a single-venue format to facilitate Covid-19 safety regulations and team travel.

Lithuania is not among the 16 teams that will compete at the championship, which is due to start on May 21.