If it’s been a while since you last went skating, now is the perfect time to break out your Skates and get back into it! It’s been a long time coming, but we finally get an IIHF Women’s World Championship in our neck of the woods, only three hours drive.
Hockey Canada announced Tuesday that Kamloops will host the 2016 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship, bringing the event to British Columbia for the first time in its 26-year history.
All 22 games at the 2016 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship will be hosted in Kamloops, with games being played at the Interior Savings Centre and McArthur Island Sports and Event Centre in April 2016, with more details to be announced at a later date.
Kamloops had previously bid to host the 2013 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship, which was ultimately hosted in Ottawa, Ont. For the 2016 event, Kamloops was one of two Canadian cities that made it to the final stage of the bid process and were ultimately selected as host by the Hockey Canada site selection committee, which consisted of Terry Ledingham (director, Hockey Canada), Mike Ross (chief business officer, Hockey Canada) and Scott Smith (chief operating officer, Hockey Canada).
Following a six-month process, the site selection committee recommended Kamloops as host of the 2016 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship to the Hockey Canada Board of Directors, which has approved that recommendation.
“As a B.C. native, I could not be more excited to have the IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship come to the province for the first time,” said Tom Renney, president and chief executive officer of Hockey Canada. “I have had the honour of coaching in Kamloops, I know the passion the city has for hockey, and I am sure it will be a first-class event on and off the ice that will grow the sport and provide young aspiring female hockey players with a chance to watch the best in the world.”
The world championship will be the second major international women’s hockey event to be held in Kamloops in a span of 18 months; the city will welcome Canada, Finland, Sweden and the United States for the 2014 4 Nations Cup from Nov. 4-8. For more information, visit www.hockeycanada.ca/4nations.
B.C. Hockey has a proven track record of hosting Hockey Canada events in the province of British Columbia and is a strong partner in the event in Kamloops. In recent years, B.C. Hockey has hosted a number of national events, including the 2013 Esso Cup in Burnaby, 2012 National Women’s Under-18 Championship in Dawson Creek, 2011 World Junior A Challenge in Langley and 2010 World Junior A Challenge in Penticton.
“We are thrilled to be the host for such a prestigious event,” said Peter Milobar, mayor of the City of Kamloops. “This is an opportunity for Kamloops to showcase itself as Canada’s Tournament Capital to the world.”
The 2016 tournament will mark the seventh time that Canada has hosted the world championship, joining 1990 and 2013 in Ottawa, 1997 in Kitchener, 2000 in Mississauga, 2004 in Halifax, and 2007 in Winnipeg, where a world championship attendance record of 122,152 fans was set.
It is estimated the world championship will have an economic impact of $20 million, with a projected profit in excess of $300,000 to be invested in minor hockey programs across the country.
Canada’s National Women’s Team has appeared in every gold medal game at the IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship, winning 10 gold medals (1990, 1992, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2007, 2012) and five silver (2005, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013).
For more information on the 2016 IIHF Ice Hockey Women’s World Championship and Canada’s National Women’s Team, please visit www.hockeycanada.ca,
This event will be exceptional to take in, so plan on attending.
