MOSCOW, October 16 (R-Sport) – Moscow will host the 2016 European short track speedskating championships, the first time Russia has held the event since 2003, the head of the Russian Skating Federation said Wednesday.
Russia has traditionally struggled in short track but is rapidly building its program ahead of hosting the 2014 Winter Olympics, including by bringing in former South Korean star Viktor Ahn.
Moscow is already set to host the world short track championships in March 2015, and the European short track championships will be held from January 22 to 24, 2016.
"The decision's been taken and it's not of a provisional nature," Russian Skating Federation president Alexei Kravtsov told R-Sport.
The European championships will be held at the Megasport arena, which has been closed since the start of 2013 for emergency structural repairs and preparation work for hosting the world hockey championships in 2016.
