by Ben Hudd • January 2, 2023

Fedor Gorst has revealed that he will likely miss the first half of the 2023 nineball season following an application for a green card in the USA.

Moscow-born Gorst and his girlfriend Kristina Tkach have been based in the United States since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began last March, with both now attempting to become permanent citizens.

Tkach recently received her green card and Gorst has now applied for his, meaning the former world champion will be unable to travel to international events whilst the process goes through.

Gorst was unable to compete at tournaments such as the World Pool Championship, the World Pool Masters, the UK Open and the European Open last year due to the ban imposed on Russian and Belarusian players.

He will now miss the World Championship for a second successive year, with the tournament taking place from February 1-5 in Poland, confirming that he will miss any overseas tournaments until his green card is approved via the Joe Rogan Experience podcast.

Gorst’s opening ranking tournaments on the 2023 nineball calendar will be the Turning Stone Classic from January 5-8 and the Derby City Classic from January 25-28.