The key facts

  • Czech Sports Minister Šťastna spoke out for equal respect for female athletes after the foreign minister's remarks about the Russian women's hockey players
  • On October 30, CAS overturned the IIHF decision to suspend Russia
  • The Secretary General of the Czech Ice Hockey Federation declared a position against the return of the Russian national team

The sports minister's response

Czech Sports Minister Boriš Šťastna said on social media, that women in all sports deserve equal respect and support, including in disciplines historically considered predominantly male — for example, football or motorsport. The statement was prompted by remarks from Czech Foreign Minister Petr Macinka, who called the Russian women's hockey players 'manly girls'. Earlier, Macinka had already been publicly condemned by Czech NHL players over these words, and now his statement has received a separate assessment from the relevant minister as well, which shows a noticeable divergence within the Czech establishment regarding this remark.

Context: the question of Russia's return

The statement came amid a dispute over the future of the Russian national team in international hockey. On October 30, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) fully granted the appeal of the Russian Ice Hockey Federation and overturned the International Ice Hockey Federation's (IIHF) decision on the suspension. The IIHF said it would urgently assess the steps and time needed to implement the ruling and address its operational consequences, while also expressing dissatisfaction with the CAS verdict. The Czech side's position on this issue is also ambiguous: Czech Ice Hockey Federation Secretary General Jan Černý stated that Czech hockey opposes the return of the Russian national team to international tournaments.