In the wake of the recent attacks on Ukraine from the Russian military, many high-profile events scheduled to take place in Russia are being canceled or moved.
The first and perhaps most notable cancelation was the UEFA Champions League Final which was scheduled to take place in St.Petersburg in May. UEFA issued a statement late Thursday indicating they were looking to move the event due to safety concerns and on Friday they announced it would be moved to Paris.
Hours later the FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile) who govern Formula 1 canceled the Russian Grand Prix, also citing safety concerns. No makeup plans have been determined at this point.
Prior to the announcement, multiple drivers expressed their support for Ukraine including Lewis Hamilton and reigning Champion Max Verstappen.
In addition to safety concerns, both UEFA and FIA indicated that participating in an event during these times would compromise the integrity of their competitions.
The International Olympic Committee also reached out to the various national sport bodies in Russia and requested that they cancel all official international sporting events set to take place in Russia. Additionally, they asked for events scheduled in Belarus to also be canceled.
The International Ski Federation has announced all upcoming World Cup Events in Russia are being postponed indefinitely.
In addition to these major events that garner signifigant international attention, many international industry conventions are also being canceled or moved.
