US plans for possibility of NHL boycott

The United States Olympic Committee (USOC) said on Tuesday it has discussed a Plan B with USA Hockey should the National Hockey League decide not to send professional players to the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Games.

The NHL has participated in five consecutive Winter Games but its participation in South Korea is in doubt after the International Olympic Committee said it would no longer cover players' costs, which have been estimated at around $10 million.

"We have had discussions with USA Hockey about a Plan B if that does not happen," USOC chief executive Scott Blackmun said.

"Obviously it creates more challenges for them and for us from an organizational standpoint, we're still very hopeful the NHL players will be there.

"We know they (the players) want to be there and we understand the challenges it creates for the league.

"We are certainly exploring all avenues that would allow that to happen."

Increasingly unhappy about shutting down operations in the middle of the season and turning their most valuable assets over to national team duty, NHL owners believe they are seeing little return on their Olympic investment.

International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) president Rene Fasel has been scrambling to strike a deal indicating the ice hockey's governing body would find the money to cover the costs.

However, it is reported the IIHF is seeking contributions from various federations, including Hockey Canada and USA Hockey, which would divert funds from grassroots programs.

The NHL and NHL Players' Association are expected to make a decision on Pyeongchang in January.

The Russian doping scandal and the fallout from the McLaren report released last Friday were also hot topics.

USOC chairman Larry Probst called the doping crisis, "a five-alarm fire" that needs to be aggressively attacked.

The USOC said it supported the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation decision on Tuesday to pull the 2017 world championships out of Sochi and award them to another venue.

Latvia pulled out of the Feb 13-26 championships following the publication last week of the second part of the McLaren Report into Russian doping which revealed an institutional conspiracy to conceal positive drug tests.

"We fully support the decision that bobsled made today," said Blackmun.

"But we're not in favor of sport-by-sport boycotts by our athletes."

Russia loses bobsleigh worlds

The doping scandal that has engulfed Russian sport claimed another casualty on Tuesday when the 2017 bobsleigh and skeleton world championships were taken away from Sochi amid the growing threat of a boycott.

Latvia pulled out of the Feb 13-26 event following last week's publication of the second part of the McLaren Report into Russian doping, which revealed a state-sponsored conspiracy to conceal positive tests.

South Korea, hosts of the 2018 Winter Olympics, and skeleton athletes from the United States were also considering withdrawing from the championships in protest at Russian doping.

The new venue will be decided in the next few days, the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation said in a statement.

Germany had already said it was willing to host the competition if it was switched.

The decision to move the championships was politicized and without grounds, Russia's RIA news agency quoted Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

Vitaly Smirnov, the head of Russia's anti-doping commission, told R-Sport news agency that other sports could now choose to move competitions away from his country.

"It's probably a consequence of the McLaren Report ... in principle there could be decisions on a whole range of sports," Smirnov said.

Russia is due to host the eighth stage of the Biathlon World Cup in Tyumen from March 7-12, the ISU World Cup Speed Skating final in Chelyabinsk (March 10-12) and the cross-country World Cup final in Tyumen from March 16-19.

The country is also scheduled to stage soccer's 2018 World Cup and four of the 2020 European soccer championship matches, including one of the quarterfinals.