World Bandy Championship in 2024 in general will not take place. Both Sweden and Norway refused to host a major competition. But just a year ago the tournament was supposed to be held in Russia, but for obvious reasons it was taken away from our country. Europe wanted to do everything politically correct, but it seems to have become bogged down by its own limitations. And this is a signal to other sports.
It was taken away from Russia, and the plan was not further thought through. In 2023, the World Championship was planned to be held in Kemerovo, but in March last year, the International Federation made a rash decision to move the tournament from Russia against the backdrop of the situation in Ukraine. The championship was eventually organized in Sweden, but without the Russians the competition turned out to be boring and predictable. The hosts won, and they became champions for the 13th time, beating the Russian national team in this indicator.
Actually, this is the reason why all this was started. Only the problems due to Russia's removal only increased. And today the Norwegian Bandy Federation announced on its official website the cancellation of the 2024 World Championship.
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“The Norwegian Bandy Federation today regrets to announce that the 2024 World Championship will not be held for either women or men,” the message says.
The Russian Bandy Federation, with reference to Swedish portal Bandypuls stated that as many as three Swedish cities applied to host the men's tournament, but all of them eventually refused to organize the competition. The women's world championship was planned in Norway, but this country also considered it necessary to withdraw the application.
Soon the information was confirmed by the International Federation, noting that now the main goal will be to focus on organizing the 2025 World Championship. But there are serious doubts that in light of the latest news, someone will express a desire to take over the hosting of the tournament. It is obvious that without Russia, competitions lose a huge amount of audience and profit.
What does this mean globally? And this is the maximum alarm bell for other sports. In cross-country skiing the situation is similar. Without Alexander Bolshunov, Natalya Nepryaeva and others, the World Cup and Championship turned into a dull spectacle. You can name a dozen other disciplines where the same things happen. In Europe they can calmly say that everything is fine and there are no problems. However, just look at the financial statements of, for example, FIS or ISU, and everything becomes crystal clear. These federations are losing money, views, advertising.
What happened with the Bandy World Championship may soon happen in skiing, figure skating, and many other places. Some summer sports are well aware of this and have found a way to allow Russians to participate in competitions. At the recent world sambo championship, our guys showed themselves brilliantly, and the competition did not involve any loud political scandals.
It turns out that Europe harmed itself with sanctions, depriving the same Swedish or Norwegian hockey players of the chance to become champions and prize-winners of the world championship. It is unlikely that the athletes themselves were happy about this prospect. The only question is whether they will be able to send a distress signal or will continue to quietly watch as everything around them collapses and bends.
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