The leader of Ukrainian curling has issued a statement to The Curling News regarding this week’s International Olympic Committee decision to remove Russia’s suspension, in which he urges World Curling “not to treat the IOC decision as an obligation to reinstate Russian or Belarusian teams.”

“Curling must remain a sport of integrity, respect, and fair play. It cannot become a pathway for the rehabilitation of a state that continues to destroy Ukrainian lives, communities and sporting opportunities,” the statement reads.

Oleksii Perevezentsev is the President of the Ukrainian Curling Federation.

“The Ukrainian Curling Federation considers the IOC decision of 7 July 2026 to be deeply disappointing, premature and dangerous in its practical consequences,” the statement begins.

“This is not merely a technical or administrative decision. The IOC has lifted the suspension of the Russian Olympic Committee and declared that its previously recommended conditions concerning Russian athletes and teams are no longer applicable. The decision has already been widely understood as a step toward Russia’s return to the qualification pathway for LA28. Russian officials themselves have described it as a ‘green light’ for International Federations to reinstate Russian athletes. That reaction alone shows why International Federations must proceed with extreme caution.”

Perevezentsev expresses support of the positions expressed by three Ukrainian government entities, including the National Olympic Committee.

“The essential facts have not changed. The Russian Federation continues its full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine. Ukrainian athletes, coaches, and members of the sporting community continue to be killed. Ukrainian cities and sports infrastructure continue to be attacked. Belarus continues to assist Russia’s aggression. In these circumstances, opening the door to the normalization of Russian sport is not neutral. It is a political signal with real consequences.

“The IOC has said that its decision is based on the removal of regional sports organisations from territories under the jurisdiction of the NOC of Ukraine and on assurances that the Russian Olympic Committee will not conduct activities there. We believe that formal assurances from Moscow cannot be treated as proof of genuine compliance. In the case of Russia, sport has repeatedly been used as an instrument of state legitimacy, influence, and propaganda. Cosmetic or procedural changes cannot erase the reality of aggression, occupation, and the continuing use of sport to legitimize the aggressor state.”

The Curling News’ story on this week’s IOC decision revealed for the first time that Russia has launched legal action against World Curling, in the form of an application to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the organization known to curling fans due to the Brian Harris saga.

The Curling News also revealed that Russia is also seeking arbitration within the Swiss court system of World Curling’s most recent decision to continue that nation’s suspension, now into its fourth year.  

“For curling, this is not a theoretical issue,” Perevezentsev continued. “World Curling has already faced direct legal pressure from Russia over the continued suspension of adult Russian and Belarusian teams. This timeline shows the environment in which International Federations are now expected to make decisions: not only sporting judgment, but legal pressure from the sporting structures of the aggressor state. That is exactly why a clear, principled, and fact-based position remains necessary.

“We respectfully urge World Curling and all International Federations not to treat the IOC decision as an obligation to reinstate Russian or Belarusian teams. The IOC itself has left decisions on participation, events, officials, symbols, and protocol elements to International Federations and event organizers. Those federations must look beyond formal representations and assess the real circumstances: the ongoing war, the rights and safety of Ukrainian athletes, the integrity of competitions, unresolved anti-doping concerns in Russian sport, and the risk that international sport will again be used to legitimize aggression.

Curling must remain a sport of integrity, respect, and fair play. It cannot become a pathway for the rehabilitation of a state that continues to destroy Ukrainian lives, communities and sporting opportunities. Until Russia ends its aggression against Ukraine, and until there are independently verifiable grounds to conclude that Russian sport is no longer part of that aggression or its legitimization, Russian and Belarusian teams should not be reinstated in international curling.”