overturns

Ukraine’s ice hockey federation has expressed “deep outrage” at Russia being allowed to compete in international events again.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) overturned the ban placed on Russia by the sport’s global governing body, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF).

Russia have been suspended from competing in IIHF events since the country invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and earlier this year the IIHF ruled they would remain excluded.

The Russian Ice Hockey Federation (RIHF) appealed that decision to Cas, which has upheld it following an in-person hearing at its headquarters in Lausanne, Switzerland.

In a statement, the Hockey Federation of Ukraine said it “respected the authority and status of Cas”.

“At the same time, we express our deep outrage at this decision,” it added.

It said the threats, which had formed the basis of the ban, had not disappeared, adding “against this background, the decision to allow Russian teams to international hockey competitions causes special outrage”.

A statement from Cas, external said that arguments made by the IIHF “citing safety, security and other concerns” were “not supported by sufficient evidence”.

Russia are now set to be part of IIHF events in the 2026-27 season, including the men’s and women’s world championships.

Ukraine’s men have qualified for the top flight world championships for the first time in 20 years after winning promotion at this year’s Division 1 tournament in Poland.

The IIHF would not confirm whose place Russia could potentially take but pointed to its statement which said: “The ruling also has significant practical implications for competitions already at an advanced stage of preparation.

“These decisions made by Cas do not consider the practical elements which cannot be implemented immediately.”

Individual athletes from Russia were allowed to compete at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy under a neutral flag, although not in ice hockey.

The IIHF expressed “disappointment”, external with the ruling.

“The IIHF disagrees with this aspect of the ruling and maintains that its decisions were necessary to protect the safety and security of all participants and safeguard the integrity of its competitions,” they said in a statement.

“While the IIHF respects the authority of Cas and will act in accordance with its ruling, the outcome does not remove the concerns that informed its assessments.”

Germany will host the men’s world championships in May and Frank Lutz, chairman of the German ice hockey federation, said: “We reject the return of Russian national teams to international ice hockey tournaments.

“Allowing Russia to participate entails significant security-related, political, and economic consequences for us as hosts. We are now evaluating the ruling together with the IIHF and will provide information regarding the next steps.”

The United Kingdom, Finnish and Czech federations also condemned the decision to allow Russia to enter teams.

Jan Cerny, secretary general of Czech Ice Hockey said he “very unpleasantly surprised” by the decision adding: “The current stance of Czech ice hockey does not change with the CAS decision. We do not agree with Russia’s participation in IIHF tournaments during the war of aggression in Ukraine.”

The chairman of the Finnish Ice Hockey Federation, Heikki Hietanen, called the ruling “in it’s entirety, incomprehensible”.

Ice Hockey UK said: “While disappointed, we respect the authority of Cas, and will analyse the decision and its potential implications for Great Britain’s national teams.”

A statement from the RIHF said it “welcomes the decision” from Cas and stated it will work with the IIHF to “facilitate the return of Russian teams to competitions”.

Race walker Koki Ikeda returns to competition immediately; Ethiopia’s marathon runner Ruti Aga given 6-year doping ban.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) upheld an appeal by Japanese race walker Koki Ikeda against World Athletics, clearing the Tokyo Olympic silver medallist of an anti-doping rule violation and making him immediately eligible to compete again.

The 28-year-old was provisionally suspended in November 2024 before receiving a four-year sanction from the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) in February 2025 for allegedly using or attempting to use a banned drug.

Ikeda was not allowed to participate in the Japan Race Walking Championships in February 2025, and all his competitive results between June 20, 2023 and November 1, 2024 were disqualified.

Ikeda challenged the ruling at CAS in March 2025, rejecting the doping allegations brought by World Athletics, which had alleged blood manipulation based on abnormalities in his Athlete Biological Passport.

The case was heard by a CAS panel in Lausanne in May. While the panel accepted that several readings in Ikeda’s biological profile were abnormal, it found there was a reasonable non-doping explanation for the findings.

CAS said Ikeda supported his case with substantial medical and expert evidence, providing a broader factual basis than was available during the proceedings before the World Athletics tribunal.

The appeal body overturned the four-year sanction, concluding that the anti-doping charge had not been established and that no ban should apply.

Ikeda placed second in the 20km event at the Tokyo Games as well as at the World Championships in Eugene in 2022. He finished seventh at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Ethiopia’s Aga handed six-year doping ban

Ethiopian marathon runner Ruti Aga, winner of the 2019 Tokyo Marathon, was given a six-year ban for the presence or use of the prohibited substance methylprednisolone and tampering with evidence, the AIU said on Thursday.

The AIU said Aga, 32, received a two-year ban after testing positive for methylprednisolone, a prohibited steroid that can reduce pain and fatigue and aid recovery, after winning a half marathon in China in March.

It added four years to the ban after finding she had misled investigators during an interview and submitted a fake prescription to justify her use of the substance.

Aga has been provisionally suspended since September 10, with the ban running from that date.

She has finished second three times and third twice at World Marathon Majors.

Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court has set aside the death sentence handed to a Sri Lankan migrant worker over a comment he made on Facebook, Colombo’s Deputy Foreign Minister Arun Hemachandra said.

Anojan Sivarasa, 27, was sentenced to death in September after a Saudi appellate court convicted him of blasphemy against Islam and the Prophet Muhammad over his comment.

The case sent shockwaves through Sri Lanka, spurring diplomatic efforts to seek clemency.

Saudi Arabia’s top court set aside the sentence on Wednesday, Hemachandra said in a post on Facebook, where he thanked the authorities and legal teams of both nations for their efforts.

In late June, footage of a young Muslim man kicking a dog following Hindu pilgrims circulated widely on social media, triggering religious arguments online.

During the exchange, a user posted derogatory remarks about a Hindu deity, leading Sivarasa to respond in Tamil insulting the Prophet Muhammad.

Although Sivarasa promptly deleted the comment and posted an apology video, a screenshot of it was brought to the attention of his employer and Saudi officials, leading to his arrest in July.

It is not clear if there will be further legal proceedings or whether Sivarasa will remain in detention, and for how long. He was initially sentenced to five years in prison as well as a fine of three million Saudi riyals ($0.8m; £0.6m) by the Al-Ahsa Criminal Court.

Faizer Mustafa, a Sri Lankan lawmaker who is involved in legal negotiations with Saudi Arabia regarding Sivarasa’s case, confirmed to BBC Sinhala that Saudi Arabia had overturned the death sentence, adding that they are reviewing the Supreme Court’s latest ruling.

Sivarasa’s family had earlier said they have had no direct contact with him since 28 September.

International rights groups had also joined calls for Saudi to spare his life.

“Saudi authorities should end their use of abusive laws to hand out extraordinary sentences for speech-related offenses, especially against migrant workers who are already in a vulnerable position with limited protections,” Joey Shea, senior Saudi Arabia researcher at Human Rights Watch, said on Tuesday.