Winter Olumpics 2022 – Page 8

by Storie Serres|19 NOV 2021 IIHF

In 2019 the world watched as Finland and USA battled in the final of the IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship in Espoo, Finland.

Taking place inside a sold-out arena, and with 2.3 million viewers in Finland alone who watched some of the greatest players compete from start to finish, this tournament inspired a new generation of girls to pick up a hockey stick for the first time.

In a new partnership with players from Finland, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Russia, and Japan, the IIHF is launching a ambassador program aimed at telling the story of some of the world’s top female players and aim to “Inspire The Next”.

Women’s hockey has seen saw an 19% rise in popularity between 2011-2019.

More girls are getting into the sport, and the promotion of Hungary and Denmark at the 2021 Women’s World Championships and the historic Olympic qualification of the Danes and the Czech Republic serves to support that a new era with new horizons for women’s hockey is upon us.

But the story of women’s hockey is more than what’s on the ice.

Female players juggle school, work, and family life, all while working for a roster spot on their respective Olympic national teams.

In the lead-up to the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, the IIHF will be showcasing from the athletes’ perspective what it takes to battle for an Olympic roster spot.

From Instagram Takeovers, TikTok videos, articles, and special features, get to know the women’s hockey ambassadors from through own voice as they take you into their world and towards the Olympics.

Players from the qualified teams will be showcased, and include past Olympians Ronja Savolainen (Finland), Petra Neimenen (Finland), Lara Stalder (Switzerland), Akane Hosoyamada (Japan), Chiho Osawa (Japan), Alexandra Vafina (ROC) and Olympic hopefuls Lena-Marie Lutz (Switzerland) and Samantha Kolowrat (Czech Republic).

Follow the IIHF on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok as these ambassadors of women’s hockey showcase their journey to the world’s biggest stage; The Beijing Olympics.

Fans can also use the hashtags #IIHF and #InspireTheNext to join the social conversation and engage with the ambassador program.

ASSOCIATED PRESS Nov. 17 2021

MYTISHCHI, Russia (AP) — The players hoping to make China’s men’s hockey team for next year’s Beijing Olympics lost a second trial game against a Russian club on Wednesday as uncertainty builds over whether they will be allowed to play at the Winter Games.

International Ice Hockey Federation officials observed Kunlun Red Star’s 4-1 loss to Avangard Omsk in the Kontinental Hockey League. The Chinese team’s 5-4 overtime loss to Amur Khabarovsk in another KHL game two days earlier was also used to assess the competitive strength of the team. Kunlun has a 7-22 record in the Russia-based league.

China is using Kunlun as a proxy for the national team. Most of the roster consists of North American-born players who league records list as having taken Chinese nationality. More players could be naturalized in time for the Olympics.

Avangard had 35 shots on goal while Kunlun had 14, but the score was only 2-1 with four minutes remaining. Former Detroit Red Wings defenseman Jake Chelios — son of NHL great Chris Chelios — scored Kunlun’s only goal.

China has never previously competed in a men’s Olympic hockey tournament. It most recently played in the fourth-highest division of the IIHF world championships in 2019, before it naturalized foreign-born players.

The IIHF has acknowledged concerns about China’s competitiveness but president Luc Tardif said this month the federation would not remove the team from the Olympics. Tardif appeared to change his stance Tuesday, telling reporters in Canada that the IIHF and International Olympic Committee would decide next week whether China could play and that Norway’s team could step in as a replacement.

It’s unclear how many foreign-born players could represent China. The IIHF has refused to say which Kunlun players are eligible — Chelios, for example, is listed as a U.S. player in KHL records — and Tardif has said the IIHF needs to confirm player eligibility.

Kunlun coach Ivano Zanatta, who has experience at the Olympics as a Canada-born player for Italy, has said his players will struggle to keep the score down in Beijing.

“For me, it’s pretty easy, having lived the experience of the heritage player with the Italian national team. We basically circled the wagons and we held solid defense and that has to be the attitude,” Zanatta said Monday. “Let’s face it, we’re playing Canada, USA. We’re not looking at anything other than, you know, you’ve got to be able to compete, stay with them.”