In addition to the men's U20 tournaments, the IIHF Council also decided to cancel all women's U18 tournaments. The recommendations of IIHF Covid-19 Expert Group cited major concerns over the ability of the event hosts to operate a tournament in a safe environment and without incurring potentially serious financial risks.
"By choosing to cancel these tournaments now, we can avoid a situation where the tournament organizer needlessly spends money to prepare these tournaments," René Fasel, president of the IIHF, says. "The money that would have been used for these tournaments will help the organizers to get through this season."
The World Juniors 2021, on the other hand, will take place as a single-venue event without spectators at Rogers Arena in Edmonton. It will thus take place in a "bubble" just like the NHL playoffs: "We are confident that we can follow the NHL’s great example in creating a safe environment for teams to compete," René Fasel says.
