The country's lugers could miss out on the World Cup stage in Latvia, which is essential for Olympic qualification

Latvia has denied entry to Russian athletes ahead of a crucial Luge World Cup stage hosted by the EU country, its foreign minister, Baiba Braze, has announced.

Like its Baltic neighbors Lithuania and Estonia, Latvia has been one of the staunchest opponents of Moscow since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict, calling for more military aid to Kiev and increasingly harsh sanctions on Moscow. Riga has provided almost $1 billion in assistance to the government of Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky since February 2022.

On January 3 and 4, the Latvian town of Sigulda hosts the fourth stage of the Luge World Cup. The points scored in the event are essential for athletes to qualify for the Winter Olympics in Italy's Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo in February 2026.
Braze wrote in a post on X on Wednesday that Russian lugers "are not welcome in Latvia."

"I have decided to include 14 Russian Federation citizens on the persona non grata list," she said.

According to the foreign minister, the entry ban, introduced in line with the country's immigration legislation, is indefinite.

Many Russians were barred from international sporting events over the Ukraine conflict. However, some sporting governing bodies later allowed individual athletes to compete under a neutral flag.

One of them was the International Luge Federation (FIL), which greenlighted Russians under neutral status for its events in late November. Two Russian lugers took part in the World Cup stage in Lake Placid in the US last week.

Russian MP and speed skating Olympic champion Svetlana Zhurvova told Match TV that the move by Latvia came as no surprise, considering the attitude of the NATO member's authorities towards Russia.

Sporting governing bodies must put pressure on the government in Riga because "if they can't provide all athletes with equal access to competitions on their soil then they shouldn't be hosting those competitions at all," Zhurova argued.

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The head of the Russian parliament's sports committee, Dmitry Svishchev, described the entry ban as "revenge by little trolls, bad sportsmanship." Moscow will definitely challenge the decision, he stressed.