Poland's national women's hockey team is at risk of not being able to travel to Japan for the final round of Olympic Qualifying after Poland President Andrzej Duda blocked funding for the team.
Poland's national women's hockey team is at risk of not being able to travel to Japan for the final round of Olympic Qualifying after Poland President Andrzej Duda blocked funding for the team.
Poland may not have a chance to play at the 2026 Olympic Games in women's hockey. The Polish Ice Hockey Association stated they are unable to pay to send their women's national team to the final Olympic qualifying tournament in Japan in February.
Poland's Minster of Sport and Tourism Sławomir Nitras and government members in the Polish legislature attempted to pass funding for the team and other Polish athletes, but the passed vote was vetoed by Polish President Andrzej Duda.
"The Polish Ice Hockey Association cannot afford to cover the costs of the Polish hockey players' trip to Japan," the Association wrote in a translated statement. "We have to count on the central authorities and right after the team advanced to the final phase of the Olympic qualifications, we received an initial declaration of assistance from Minister Sławomir Nitras. We hope that the undoubted success of women's hockey will not fall victim to political disputes."
The political dispute referenced comes after the liberal government in Poland decided to finance various national sports federations and the team through the State Institute of Sports, but president Andrzej Duda of the far-right Prawo i Sprawiedliwość (PiS) part vetoed the act.
Minister Nitras has asked the Polish government to pay for the women's national team to attend the qualifier to no avail.
"I will write to the president as a matter of urgency to demand that he pay for these tickets, since he did not let me pay for them. Today I will write to the president to find PLN 250,000 in the budget of the president's office to pay the Polish hockey players for their trip to Japan," Nitras stated to Polish press.
While women's hockey is the sport where this gap has come to the forefront, it's also impacting other athletes including in badminton and cycling.
Poland's women's hockey team had won the opportunity to qualify for the 2026 Olympic Games in the final round by winning Olympic Qualification Round 3, Group F. Poland swept through the group defeating Korea, Chinese Taipei, and Mexico.
Poland is slated to play in Group G in Tomakomai, Japan facing Japan, China, and France with a single berth into the Olympics on the line from the Group.