International Bans On Russian Sports, Entertainment Pile Up

Russia's sports and entertainment worlds continue to feel the effects of global opposition to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine as the number of barred Russian sports teams and performers and canceled events rises.

The cultural backlash against Russia intensified on March 1 as the Cannes Film Festival said no Russian delegations would be welcome this year, while the Venice Film Festival announced free screenings of a movie about the 2014 conflict in Ukraine’s eastern regions where the government has been battling Russia-backed separatists.

Halfway around the world, Hollywood continued to pull films scheduled for release in Russia.

Major studios Warner Bros., Paramount, and Sony announced that they would halt the distribution of movies in Russia, meaning blockbuster features such as "The Batman," “Sonic the Hedgehog 2,” and “The Lost City” will not be in theaters in Russia as planned.

Back in Europe, Russian conductor Valery Gergiev joined the ranks of those barred after he was fired from his position as chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic.

The 68-year-old's dismissal came after he did not respond to demands by the orchestra that he distance himself from Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

"A clear signal to the orchestra, its audience, the public, and the city's politicians would have been indispensable in order to be able to continue working together," Munich Mayor Dieter Reiter said in a statement. "Since this did not happen, the only thing that remains is an immediate separation."

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Gergiev has not spoken publicly about the war but is considered a loyal supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The conductor, who had served as principal conductor in Munich since 2015, in the past has supported Russia's illegal 2014 annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and Russian laws restricting the rights of LGBT activists.

Gergiev has also been dropped from upcoming concerts at the Philharmonie concert hall in Paris, the Vienna Philharmonic at New York's Carnegie Hall, and Scotland's Edinburgh International Festival.

The sports world has taken a similar stance, with several more federations heeding a call from the International Olympic Committee to deny the participation of Russian athletes in organized events.

Russia and Belarus -- which has provided Moscow with assistance in the invasion -- were barred from competing in international figure skating, speed skating, skiing, basketball, and athletics by the world governing bodies of those sports on March 1, while the International Volleyball Federation announced that Russia had been stripped of its hosting of the men's Volleyball World Championships in August and September.

SEE ALSO: Sports, Cultural Losses Mount For Russia As Countries Reject World Cup Qualifiers, Bolshoi Ballet

The decision by the International Skating Union, the sports ruling body, will mean that skaters from the two countries, including Olympic gold medalist Anna Shcherbakova and 15-year-old teammate Kamila Valieva, who was the focus of a still-unresolved doping dispute at last month’s Winter Olympics in Beijing, will be excluded from the March 21-27 world championships.

The International Tennis Federation said it will still allow Russian and Belarusian players to play on the men's ATP and women's WTA tours, though without national flags. The decision comes just after Russian Daniil Medvedev took over the top spot in the men's world rankings.

Russian players, however, have been barred from team competitions such as the Davis Cup and the Billie Jean Cup until further notice. Russia won both competitions last year.

The world soccer governing body, FIFA, and its European counterpart, UEFA ,expelled Russia from the World Cup and all international soccer competitions "until further notice."

The presidents of the two organizations “hope that the situation in Ukraine will improve significantly and rapidly so that football can again be a vector for unity and peace," the statement added.

Later the same day, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) announced a similar ban, also applying it to Belarus, as well as withdrawing Russia's hosting rights for the 2023 IIHF World Junior Championships.

Both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarus leader Alyaksandr Lukashenka are major ice hockey fans who often play in exhibition games with celebrities and ice hockey icons from their countries.

Last week, the Formula One international racing organization canceled the Russian Grand Prix scheduled for September 25.

With reporting by AP, Reuters, AFP, and dpa