At present, four specialists representing Latvia continue to work in Russian hockey clubs, whose changes in the Sports Law could prevent them from working in the ranks of the Latvian national team. The Secretary General of the Latvian Hockey Federation (LHF) Roberts Pļāvējs does not want to put a “fat seal” on these coaches, the functionary admitted in a conversation with Latvian Television.
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It is reported that the video coach of the Continental Hockey League (KHL) club Omsk “Avangard” has left Peter Grom. Viktor Ignatiev, the coach of Magnitogorsk “Metallurg”, also took such a step in the second week after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, reports LTV and the media “sports.ru”. Ignatjev had just worked as an assistant to Harry Vītoliņš in the Latvian national team at the Beijing Olympics.
At least it is not known to the public that Sergei Naumov (CSKA Moscow), Grigory Panteleev (Rostov), Aldis Abolins (Avangard), Normunds Siliņš (Kazan Ak Bars) or Leonid Tambiyev (Vladivostok) have broken their ties with Russian clubs. “Admiral”). The first four of these specialists continued to work in their club after the start of the war, but Tambijev has spoken publicly about his plans for next season as “Admiral” coach.
“This is not the opinion expressed by specific people,” Roberts Pļāvējs said in an interview with LTV. “Also the situation last week with [tiesnesi] Eduards Odiņš, when we all knew that he did not have any designated games. In sports, especially now KHL, politics has entered unnecessarily much. Maybe in some cases it can be seen as a kind of political move. I would not want to call it revenge, it would be too loud. But we can still draw some parallels. “
At least for the time being, the LHF does not want to decide whether the coaches who remain in Russia could work in one of the Latvian national teams in the future.
“In the current situation, it is difficult for me personally to find a logical reason why people would work here in Latvian hockey and at the same time continue to work in Russia. But I would not want to put a big, bold stamp on anyone,” admits Pļāvējs.
It is reported that the Ministry of Education and Science (MES) plans to introduce amendments to the Sports Law, which will distance itself from cooperation with Russia and Belarus. The changes in the legislation mentioned by the Ministry of Education and Science will be initiated as a matter of urgency, LTV reports.
“There will be a norm in the Sports Law that athletes and sports employees who do not comply with the relevant ban may not be included in the national team, nor may they receive funds from the state and local government budgets to cover training and competition expenses,” explains the director of the Ministry of Education and Science Edgards Severs.
As is well known, at the end of February, Vladimir Putin ordered the launch of a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, starting a brutal war against his neighbor. Strict international sanctions have been imposed on Russia and its ally Belarus, including in the sports sector, but most foreign athletes have left its clubs.
