This post was originally published on South China Morning Post.
Belarus stripped of ice hockey world championship after crackdown on protesters
Belarus has been stripped of the right to co-host this year’s ice hockey world championship due to safety concerns over political unrest and the Covid-19 pandemic there, the sport’s governing body said on Monday, in a blow to President Alexander Lukashenko.The move deprives Lukashenko, an avid hockey fan, of a stage to host the biggest international event planned in the country since he claimed victory last August in a vote the opposition said was rigged and marred with violations.Belarusian…