Norway has followed Finland in shutting its doors on Russian athletes. The government in Oslo says it will deny entry to professional athletes and support staff from Russia and Belarus who travel to compete, for as long as the war in Ukraine continues. It is a significant move for winter sport: Norway hosts several World Cup events this season, starting with next week's ski jumping and Nordic combined opener in Lillehammer.
Immigration and police told to turn athletes away
According to NRK, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security has told the Directorate of Immigration (UDI) and the National Police Directorate (POD) to refuse entry to these athletes and their staff under immigration law. Justice minister Astri Aas Hansen said Norway already had restrictive visa practices for Russian and Belarusian citizens but was now tightening further who gets to travel there.
Culture minister Lubna Jaffery of the Labour Party was more blunt. Because Russia is continuing its brutal war of aggression, she said, the government does not want Russian and Belarusian professional athletes and support staff coming to Norway for international competitions. Speaking to NRK on Friday morning, she called it a tightening that follows from the fact that there is still war in Ukraine, adding that Norway does not want Russian athletes and their support teams competing on Norwegian soil. The government argues that Russian elite sport maintains close ties to the authorities and state structures.
A Nordic front before the World Cup winter
The announcement came hard on the heels of Finland's decision. Foreign minister Elina Valtonen said on Thursday that Russian athletes have no place in Finland as long as Russia's war of aggression continues. Finnish visas will still be assessed case by case, but in practice the policy amounts to a block. It is due to take effect on Monday and explicitly covers athletes competing with neutral status. That puts the spotlight on the Nordic Opening in Ruka at the end of November.
Norway has not yet said when its rules will apply, but plenty of events could be affected. After Lillehammer, the World Cup circuit returns to Norway later in the winter, including at Holmenkollen. Norwegian outlet langrenn.com also lists the cross-country World Cup in Trondheim in early December as affected. At earlier races in Norway, Russian skiers competed under a neutral flag, including Darya Nepryaeva and Savely Korostelev in the 5km at Holmenkollen.
Cross-CountrySpitsov cleared, Bolshunov left out: FIS neutral status row heads to CASMoscow threatens legal action
The dispute lands on FIS at an awkward moment. The governing body has granted neutral status to several hundred Russian and Belarusian athletes, most recently to cross-country skier Sergey Spitsov. Alexander Bolshunov was refused, and NRK reports he will miss the upcoming races in Finland and Norway in any case. Now host nations are threatening to keep out even athletes FIS has cleared.
Russian Ski Federation president Dmitry Svishchev has vowed to fight back. According to langrenn.com, he said Russia had told FIS clearly that it would go to court if necessary. His argument is that organisers are contractually obliged to admit athletes regardless of nationality.
The row also matters for the 2027 Nordic World Ski Championships in Falun, Sweden, where authorities have already looked into whether visas for Russians could be refused. In late October there was speculation that Val di Fiemme could step in as replacement host if Falun lost the championships over excluding Russians. The Italian venue called that a complete misunderstanding. With Norway and Finland both closing their borders to Russian competitors, two of Nordic skiing's biggest hosts have made their position clear before the first World Cup start in Lillehammer on 20 November.
