Legendary Czech hockey player says former Russian president threatened to kill him

World hockey legend Dominik Hašek has stated that he sent letters to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) after former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev allegedly threatened to kill him.

Source: Former Czech hockey player on X (Twitter)

Quote: "Today I ent 2 official letters. One to the IOC President and the members of the Executive Board. And the other to the IIHF President and the members of the Council. 

I inform them that former Russian President Medvedev threatened to kill me. Furthermore, among other things, I point out how important their decisions will be in the coming months and again offer assistance in creating rules so that sports competitions are not an advertisement for the Russian war and people do not die because of them. 

I consider both letters very important not only for the IOC and IIHF, but for the entire sports and also non-sports community. Therefore, I will publish them in a few days."

Details: Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Hašek has repeatedly condemned the actions of the Russian authorities as well as famous Russian hockey players who have failed to speak out against the war.

In particular, he criticised the NHL, the US and Canada for allowing Alexander Ovechkin to become the league’s all-time leading goal scorer.

After Ovechkin broke the record, Dmitry Medvedev wrote on social media that he was "waiting for Hašek’s suicide".

Dominik Hašek's career is widely considered unique and full of achievements. At age 16, he debuted for Pardubice in Czechoslovakia’s top division. [Czechoslovakia was formed from several provinces of the collapsing empire of Austria-Hungary in 1918, at the end of World War I and lasted until 1 January 1993 - ed.] In 1983, he played two matches at the World Championship, where his country won silver. He later added three bronze medals (1987, 1989, 1990) and was named the tournament’s best goaltender in 1987 and 1989.

As he played for NHL clubs that regularly reached the playoffs, he often missed World Championships. Nevertheless, he became an Olympic champion in 1998 and earned a bronze medal at the 2006 Games with the Czech national team.

Hašek played for Chicago, Buffalo, and Detroit in the NHL, appearing in 735 games. He won the Vezina Trophy, awarded to the league’s best regular-season goaltender, six times.

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