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The video shocked the global hockey community this week in which
a player in the UHL mimed peeling and eating a banana in a
gesture directed towards a Black player during a match.
Evgeniy Kolychev said he was sacked by the Ice Hockey Federation
of Ukraine for speaking out against racism. In a phone
interview, he also echoed calls for tougher punishments for
players found guilty of racist behaviour.
"I was accused of publishing a video on the league's website and
spreading it all over the world," Kolychev said.
"And I did not interfere with the publication of the video.
Indeed, I did not interfere with this because the League would
not want to hide this fact."
Reuters could not independently verify his claims.
The hockey federation has not responded to requests for comment
but on its website listed six reasons for Kolychev's dismissal,
including "dissemination of false information that discredits
the image of Ukrainian hockey in general".
HC Kremenchuk forward Andriy Deniskin was suspended for 13 games
after he taunted HC Donbass defenceman Jalen Smereck, the only
American player in the eight-team league.
"I am the only one who called Jalen," Kolychev said. "He felt
bad. A stream of hate fell upon him.
"My position is absolutely clear: there is no place for racism
in hockey. My dismissal is a banal reprisal against me because I
did not want to hush up the fact of racist statements," Kolychev
added.
Smereck said on Instagram he will not play another game in the
UHL unless Deniskin is removed from the league, which is made up
mostly of Ukrainian and Russian players.
Deniskin apologised on Instagram, saying he acted in the heat of
the moment and that he respects all people regardless of race or
nationality. He later deleted the post after coming under fire
for being insincere.
Kolychev echoed calls for tougher punishment for racist
incidents. Under the UHL's rules, only three games of Deniskin's
13-game ban are mandatory, and the player can avoid serving the
remaining 10 games if the club pay a 50,000 hryvnia ($1,900)
fine, or 5,000 hryvnia per game.
A 13-match suspension was not enough, Kolychev said, while
acknowledging it was the maximum punishment under the league's
regulations.
Kolychev said he was fired during a Zoom meeting with the hockey
federation on Thursday after only a month in his job as general
manager. He said the reasons given by the federation were an
excuse to get rid of him.
"I wasn't even allowed to say a word. I concluded by saying that
I thank you for not letting me speak. It was absolutely
anti-democratic."
($1 = 26.6294 hryvnias)
(This story refiles to fix headline, no change to story.)
(Editing by Matthias Williams and Ken Ferris)
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