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HOPE,PEACE,EQUALITY...
WE LIVE THE DREAM OF THE FUTURE!
How quickly a year has passed!it seems like it was just yesterday that we published the first issue of the Iran hockey newsletter. A year full of bitter and sweet moments, full of excitement, full of hope... and how we wish to saw the light of the sun and these dark days would pass. We
live hockey... We love our sport... We will be fighting for our dreams...
We love this beautiful country, and the future is bright...
On the occasion of International. Day of the Girl Child this issue is dedicated to all brave Iranian girls.
Inside This Issue
P G .2
An interview with Nafas ARBABI, Iran young hockey player
PG.5
Asia & Oceania looking to a bright future
PG.6
The prevalence and growth of women's hockey across the globe
PG.10
I am Nafas!
Intro
Ice hockey in Iran does not have a long history. In fact, this sport seriously started its life three years ago with the opening of IranMall's ice rink, but in the same time, it has managed to attract a large number of enthusiasts of this exciting sport. Meanwhile, girls' acceptance of this sport has been extraordinary.
Nafas ARBABI, who is one of the youngest hockey players in Iran at the age of nine, talks about herself and her dreams in this interesting interview:
- 1. Please introduce yourself?
Hi, I am Nafas ARBABI, I was born on the Sunday, March 2nd 2014 in Tehran. The meaning of my name is life-giving breath
- 2. When did you start your sports activities?
From the age of four to the five, I practiced gymnastics for one year. I started practicing skating in 2020 and after completing the course I started hockey
- 3. How many days a week do you exercise?
Six times a week I doing hockey from Saturday to Friday. I usually doing cycling on Fridays. This is apart from the sports exercises Ido at school
- 4. Who were your coaches?
I started skating with Negar Khorram, so continuing with Azam Sanaei in hockey. These days I am training under the supervision of Azam Sanaei and Nima Mehraban.
- 5. Do you follow other sports besides hockey?
Yes. I like cycling very much
- 6. What is the most difficult ice hockey position?
The forwards (center and wingers) because of the forward players determines the final result
- 7. Which competitions have you participated in and what ranks have you obtained?
My first tournament was IceBox quadrilateral tournament which we finished as runners-up. I participated in the first Iran Pro league with IceBox team as well which we achieved fourth place.
- 8. What is the difference between being a captain and being a player?
The captain is the most experienced player. In addition, she is the leader of the team and has most of the responsibility on the field
- 9. What things or who do you owe your success?
First of all, my father and of course my mother as my first supporters. I appreciate Azam Sane for all efforts to training me well too.
- 10. What do you expect from the top officials of Iranian sports authorities?
Currently, Iran is the only place that has an ice rink. I wish that more ice rinks are built in whole Iran so that children can easily play this sport.
- 11. What are your plans for the future?
I wish to win the Olympic ice hockey gold medal with Iran national team
- 12. What is the role of parents and coaches in encouraging children to play sports? How much time did your parents spend on sports?
As I said before, I exercise six days a week. My parents are always with me and have always supported me
- 13. Which players are you more comfortable with and do you like them?
Azam Sanaei, Negar Khorram, and Nima Mehraban
- 14. Until what age do you want to continue the championship sport?
As much as possible
- 15. Apart from sports, what job would you like to have in the future?
I want to be a dentist
- 16. How much injury do you get?
Several times! The worst was that time the puck hits my neck accidentally
- 17. If you have a child, what sports field would you like him t o play?
Certainly, Ice Hockey (Laughing)
- 18. Have you ever lost your temper in a game?
Yes, once in front of the goal, instead of hitting the puck, I hit the hockey stick itself and it didn't score unfortunately!
- 19. Did sports not hinder your education progress?
Not at all. My first priority is education
- 20. Your sweetest and bitterest memory since you played ice
hockey The sweetest is gaining the bronze medal inIran Pro League and the bitterest is the failure was in the sprint race where I fell down in the middle of the race and could not continue
- 21. Popular city in Iran and the world?
In Iran, I like Namak Abrood city in the Caspian Sea coast.
Internationally, I love Canada
My dream is to play in the Iran national team. I will do my best in this way. My big wish is that one day hockey will be the most important sport in Iran.
Asia & Oceania looking to a bright future
The first participation in an IIHF tournament for the Iranian women's national team
by Harald Spring feld & Martin Merk
The IIHF Asia and Oceania Strategy Planning Group with delegates from the IIHF's member national association in Asia and Oceania held a meeting in Abu Dhabi to prepare for the new international season but also to assess and accommodate the findings and the new Strategy Plan ICE26 ni the Asia and Oceania Region.
Due to stricter travel restrictions, many ice hockey tournaments have not been placed for two seasons in Asia. The IIHF Asia and Oceania Ice Hockey Championship (formerly Challenge Cup of Asia) came back last summer with an U20 edition held in Thailand. Now two more tournaments have been announced.
The 2023 IHF Ice Hockey U18 Asia and Oceania Championship is planned to be held between 26 February and 5 March 2023 (exact dates to be confirmed) in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia with Indonesia, India, Iran, Macau (China) (TBC), Mongolia, Singapore, Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan. It will be the first IHF tournament for Uzbekistan since becoming a member in in 2019.
The 2023 IHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania Championship will be held in Bangkok, Thailand with the initial dates 14-21 May 2023 with the participation of India, Iran, Kuwait,
Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. It will be the first participation in an IIHF tournament for the Iranian women's national team.
The meeting was held with the members of the Asia and Oceania Strategy Planning Group (AOSPG) and in attendance of IHF Senior Vice-President Petr Briza and IHF Development Director Kalle Valiaho, who introduced and highlighted the importance of ICE26.
In a seasonal review and outlook, IHF Regional Vice-President for Asia and Oceania, Aivaz Omorkanov, mentioned that the pandemic hit ice hockey in Asia very hard and it is one of the main priorities to come back stronger than ever before. Carefully selected programs with the main focus on development and sustainability alongside a good mix of events will become the key to success.
Several workshops and in-depth discussion in regard to the IIHF's key initiatives amongst the membership and with al IHF representatives on-site where a focal point of this meeting.
"We need to use every single opportunity in the Asia and Oceania region to ensure the growth and to unfold the potential. With the IHF Asia and Oceania Office, which is now located in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates and managed by IIF Sport Development Manager for Asia and Oceania Harald Springfeld, we will lay down the foundation of future growth. The office will work very closely together with the IHF Office and al 27 members of the Asia and Oceania Strategic Planning Group," said IHF Vice-President and Committee Chairman Aivaz Omorkanov.
In the first quarter of 2023, the members of the Asia and Oceania Strategy Planning Group will regroup and kick off a new series of Learn to Play seminars and recruitment program initiatives with two seminars in the region. Following the meeting, an ice making seminar for the region has started in Abu Dhabi. Based on the further development and final version of ICE26, other initiatives will follow.
Majid Honarioo, president of the Iran Skating Federation, and Kaveh Sedghi, Member of the Board of this federation have joined in this meeting.
The prevalence and growth of women's hockey across the globe
Quantifying where the women's game is most present and most changing
by Mike Murphy@DigDeepSBS
According to the lIHF, the number of registered female players has grown 33.85 percent between 2007 and 2018. Today, there are 209,966 registered female players across the 81 nations with lIHF memberships and 208,054 players in the 40 women's national teams ranked by the federation. However, 81.69 percent (171,540) of those players are in the U.S. and Canada.
Women's hockey is considered a newer sport in much of the world, including much of Europe. It should come as no surprise that the country with the longest history and deepest roots in the game is Canada.
Significant historical events, including the Great Depression, derailed the sport's momentum in North America until it appeared to regain its footing in the 1960s. But it's clear that the women's game caught on west of the Atlantic Ocean before ti did on the other side of the pond. in 1995, the Canadian Hockey Association (CHA) reported 19,050 registered female players On the Edge: Women Making Hockey History, 1996]. That's more than Sweden, Finland, the Czech Republic, and Switzerland have combined today.
Sweden's first organized women's game - Timá KI vs MODO AKl — took place ni 1969. The SDHL wasn't established until 2007; Finland's Naisten Liga (then called Naisten SM-Sarja) was founded in 1982. Seven years after pro women's hockey was established in Finland, the IHF organized the first European Women Championship. The inaugural IHF Women's World Championship in 1990 was a watershed moment for the sport that was later overshadowed by the debut of women's ice hockey at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.
Most North American hockey fans are familiar with the popularity of men's hockey in Europe and Russia. That rising popularity has been reflected in the swelling ranks of Europeans in the NHL over the last 40 years. In 1980, 82.2 percent of NHL players were Canadian and 4.2 were European; in 2017, 45.9 percent were Canadian and 28.1 percent were European or Russian.
One might assume that there would be a correlation between the popularity of men's hockey and women's hockey in prominent European hockey powers, but that is not necessarily the case.
Registered female players account for 45.9 percent of all Uzo registrations in Canada; in the United States, that number is 33.74 percent. That's a substantial gap, but not an altogether surprising one considering the popularity of the game north of the border. In Russia, registered female players account for 13.42 percent of registrations; in Finland, it's 13.15 percent; in Sweden, it's 29.86 percent; in the Czech Republic, it's 3.92 percent. The ratios are a bit all over the map.
The gaps in the ratios of registered male and female hockey players in any nation goes far beyond different levels of interest. The prevalence of girls' and women's hockey in any nation is influenced by a multitude of factors, including climate and socioeconomic and cultural issues like sexism. The majority of these factors - including sexism —are difficult to quantify, but we can look for their fingerprints by identifying countries with lackluster track records in human rights, workplace inequality, imbalances in access to education and institutions based on gender and/or race, and low visibility of women's sport. Remember, no country gets full marks here. Women's sports, including hockey, are underserved across the globe.
Still, we can use the IIHF's data to give us a snapshot of the prevalence of the women's game across the globe.
One of the biggest questions relating to the prevalence of women's hockey is about accessibility. According to the IIF, Canada has 3,300 indoor rinks and 5,000 outdoor rinks, whereas there are just 91 rinks (16 indoor, 3outdoor) in Latvia. It stands to reason that girls and women would be more likely to get involved with hockey fi they have access to an ice surface. So; more rinks, more women's hockey? Well, kinda.
The interactive table above shows each IHF member nation's number of indoor rinks and a percentage that represents the number of registered female players divided by the total population of each nation. Again, this methodology is far from ideal, but it serves as a rough indication of the popularity/prevalence of women's hockey in each nation.
The quantity of rinks has something to do with the prevalence of women's hockey in these countries, but it's clearly not the only factor.
Growth across the Globe
The HIF doesn't have a public archive of registration data, but, fortunately, able to find the data published in an BS Nation article from 2013. The growth of hockey, particularly women's hockey, in Asia has made a lot of headlines in recent years and the data visualized in the chart below definitely tells that story.
It shouldn't come as much of a surprise that the growth in registered female players has plateaued in Canada (1.72% growth) and Finland (-7.37% growth). Canada and Finland are first and second, respectively, in registered female players per capita. However, the big story here is the explosion of registered female players in Russia, China, and the Ukraine.
Although Russia still has a low number of registered female players per capita (0.00186) relative to the U.S. and Canada, the women's game is exploding there. Part of this growth is evidenced by the ZhHL (Russian Women's Hockey League), which was reorganized in 2015 following a collaboration between the KHL (Kontinental Hockey League) and the Ice Hockey Federation of Russia.
The growth of the game in China is also directly tied to a recent infusion of resources. The Chinese government and businessman Bily Ngok have invested heavily in women's hockey in the hopes of improving the national team and building the sport within China's borders before the 2022 Olympics in Beijing. Ngok's investment resulted in the creation of two Chinese CWHL teams in 2017, which has since become a single team based in Shenzhen in the ZhHL. This year, the KRS Vanke Rays were champions of the ZhHL.
Ukraine's growth is also a story unto itself. Ukraine competed in its first IHF Women's World Championship in 2019 as a direct result of the creation of the Ukrainian Women's Hockey Championship in 2017. The competition was created by three women - Olexandra Slatvytska, Nadia Boboshko, and Yulia Artemyeva - who have dedicated themselves to growing the game in their home country.
Trends and Takeaways
Clearly, even a little context can go a long way with some of the data we've been looking at. Here are several more notes, trends, and takeaways to consider in this snapshot of women's hockey across the globe in 2020.
Among the 40 nations with an lIHF ranked women's national team, female registrations account for 29.83 percent of senior players. Among the IIHF's 41 other member nations, that percentage drops to 21.14.
Several countries that are new to the international hockey scene have more female registrations than male. Noteworthy among that group are Iceland (1992), Kuwait (2009), Lebanon (2019), and Turkey (1991). However, there are exceptions, including Singapore (1996), Kazakhstan (1992), and the United Arab Emirates (2001).
Iceland is likely the most women's hockey-loving small country in the world. tI has a population under 350,000 - which is roughly the population of Anaheim, California — and just three indoor rinks, but its ranked gist among women's national teams. Only Canada, Sweden, and Finland have a higher percentage of registered female players per capita.
The Czech Republic has the lowest ratio of female registrations (3.96%) among countries with women's national teams currently ranked inside of the IIHF's top-10. The lack of registered female players (3,740) relative to male players (90,610) in the Czech Republic cals for further research, but those numbers are swelling.
Latvia (1.42%) has the lowest ratio of female registrations of any country with an IHF ranked women's national team. There are just 74 registered female players in Latvia, down from 82 in 2013.
Denmark's women's national team has a lot of talent for a country with 702 registered players. The Danes are currently ranked 1th in the world by the IlHF after finishing second at the 2019 Division I Worlds.
Sweden's recent struggles in major international tournaments have been well-documented, but women's hockey is still growing strong there despite its already strong presence. The percentage of female registrations in Sweden (29.86% are similar to those in the United States (33.74%) and in Germany (30.85%).
The growth of registered female players has begun to plateau for Canada, but that is not the case in the United States. In 2013, there were 65, 700 registered female players. That number has swollen to 82,808 in 2020 -that's a 26.04 percent increase. The growth in male registrations in that same time frame is 18.06 percent.
One of the FIRST!
An interview with Atiyeh REZAEI, Iranian female ice hockey referee
by Iran Mall IceBox
- 1. Please introduce yourself
I am Atiyeh Rezaei, was born on the Friday, February 12h, 1993 in Karaj, Alborz province. My name is an Arabic name means blessing.
- 2. When did you start your sports activities?
Ever since I was a child, I used to do sports for fun. At the age of 7, I bought my first pair of skates, and since then, skating has b e e n my main and most popular sport.
- 3. How many days a week do you exercise?
In the last few years, especially in pandemic, I have been doing yoga a t home almost every day. These days, whenever l'm at the ice rink, I skate and the rest of the days I try to do fitness exercises and yoga.
- 4. Have you ever played hockey seriously?
No, I haven't experienced it yet, but I'm sure that when I improve in refereeing, I will also play hockey for sure.
- 5. Being a player or a referee? Which is harder in hockey?
I think both are difficult. Each of them is in a different field, so i t is not possible t o make a correct comparison.
- 6. What competitions have you refereed so far?
Since 2015, every year I refereed in t h e in-line hockey league. After the opening of the Iran Mal ice rink and the start of the Iran Pro League, I refereed all league's competitions as well as international friendly tournaments, including the UAE World Amateur Hockey Championship in Dubai 2021.
- 7. What things or who do you owe your success?
Obviously, my family's support was the first of all. Also, 1 owe my success in ice hockey refereeing to Mr. Kaveh Sedghi. In absence of him, none of our efforts would have resulted. We are very lucky to have Mr. Sedghi and his presence; his constant support in the life of every single hockey community member in Iran is clear and evident.
- 8. How do you see the future of hockey refereeing in Iran?
Very bright! As you know, the Iranian men's national ice hockey team became the runner-up in the lIHF world championship division VI in Kyrgyzstan after only two years of training. Our women's hockey team is also very hopeful of shining in the world championships. So, refereeing will definitely shine along with the growth of this sport.
- 9. What do you expect from the top officials of Iranian sports authorities?
Meritocracy, and of course support for al the people who work hard for this sport
- 10. What would you do if you were the president of the federation?
Considering that the ice sports disciplines have a bright future, I would give priority to these fields.
- 11. What are your plans for the future?
I hope to be able to refereeing in the lIHF competitions one day
- 12. What is the role of parents and coaches in encouraging children to play sports? How much time did your parents spend on your sports activities?
Actually, the most basic role belongs to parents. Their knowledge about sports and its colorful role in their children's future has an important effect on their children's lives. My parents and their support have had an important impact on my progress in sports.
- 13. If you go back to being a child once again, would you follow this way?
Definitely.. with al the love!
- 14. Do referees like you have income from refereeing?
Unfortunately, refereeing in this field in Iran has not yet reached a point where it can generate income.
- 15. Do you follow the referees of the world? Are you following a famous referee?
Yes, I follow them a lot and there are many referees that I like. Actually, I have benefited from the guidance of many elite referees. First of al, Ms. Alexandra Clarke from Canada who is the first female line person in WHL history and attended in the last Olympics, and M.r Trevor Hanson, who is also an elite Canadian referee, who supported me a lot.
- 16. Do you do anything else besides sports?
Not at all
- 17. Has your carrier affected your studies? Which is more important for you, sports or studies?
No!
- 18. If you have a child, what sports field would you like him to play?
In the field that she/he is passionate about, because that is the only way she/he will succeed
- 19. Do you do other sports?
Yes. Ido Yoga
- 20. Your sweetest and bitterest memory?
The sweetest memory is presence in UAE 2021 tournament. I wish I never had bitter memories!
- 21. Food or exercise? Which is more attractive?
Both of them
- 22. What is your prediction regarding the position of ice hockey in Iran?
We will definitely have successful and highly motivated hockey players in the future who will shine in the world championships. I hope we can be the same in the field of refereeing.
- 23. What are your difficulties and comforts in sports? Do you think being a woman is a problem for progress? Doesn't being a woman slow you down?
We always need the support of the Ministry of Sports and relevant federation.
No, being a woman has never slowed us down in sports.
- 24. Have you ever been angry with the behavior of the players on the field?
No, I am not usually angry and I try to handle the intense excitement of the players so that ti does not lead to conflict and violence. But I know that many players are mad of me, especially when I disqualified them from the game
- 25. What is the difference between the look of an athlete girl and an ordinary girl?
Athlete girls have more energy and motivation
- 26. Which of the current players do you see with a brighter future?
Ice hockey is a very strategic team sport that requires a lot of teamwork. I see the very bright future for al Iranian ice hockey teams, either women or men.
- 27. Popular city in Iran and in the world?
What a difficult question! I love every historical city in the world
- 28. Regardless of gender, if you were a movie actor, which actor would you be?
Audrey Hepburn
- 29. How interested are you in cinema or other arts? Favorite artist?
I am very interested in cinema and I usually follow the latest movies. My favorite actress, as I have already said: Audrey Hepburn
Ihope that ice hockey in our country will soon become one of the most popular sports for the people of Iran and considering that ice skating is a very sweet and lovely experience, more ice rinks will be provided so that more people can experience it.
CONTACT US!
Iran Mall IceBox, Tehran, Iran
https://www.instagram.com/icebox_ir/
+9821 28424862
WhatsApp: +989339062383
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HOPE, PEACE, EQUALITY...
WE LIVE THE DREAM OF THE FUTURE!
In his book "Confessions", French author Jean-Jacques Rousseau tells a
story about Marie Antoinette, Queen of France, during the French Revolution. Upon being told that the peasants had no bread, she said:
"Qu'ils mangent de la brioche" (Then let them eat cake!)
These days are full of contradictory feelings. We don't want to be Marie Antoinette. Talking about hockey may be painful for us, but we have no choice but to continue. A path that has a clearend. So, we have to survive...
Inside This Issue
PG. 3
Making ice in Abu Dhabi
PG. 6
Upcoming Events
PG. 7
Our Happy Divorce!
PG.8
Kurdistan is beautiful...
PG.9
6 Freezingly Fascinating Facts About Ice Hockey
Making ice in Abu Dhabi
By Viesturs Koziols, IIHF
The International Ice Hockey Federation offers its members ice management seminars on a regular basis. Last year such a seminar with focus on the Balkan countries was conducted in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Due to stronger restrictions on travel and operations of indoor sporting venues on the continent, the last such event in Asia was held in 2018 in Beijing, China.
In the last few days it was time to go back and work together in Abu Dhabi on making ice. The four-day seminar for members from Asia and Oceania was held by the IHF Facilities Committee in close cooperation with the IHF Asia & Oceania Committee in the days after the IIHF Asia and Oceania Strategy Planning Group in Abu Dhabi, and with the local partners of the United Arab Emirates Winter Sports Federation and the Zayed Ice Rink in Abu Dhabi. " It was a brilliant idea to conduct the 2022 IIHF Ice Management Seminar here in Abu Dhabi because we believe that ice rinks are our basis to be able to play the game, so we believe that ti is a good thing that we can give to our stakeholders information on how they can maintain
the ice, how they can keep the ice in good shape so that we can play our game because this is something very important in our region as we don't have that much expertise," said Mohamad Aref, Technical Director of the UAE Winter Sports Federation.
The ice masters, managers from various hockey arenas and member national associations have learned the skills necessary to create and maintain a top-quality indoor ice surface for daily use in ice hockey and for competitions. 26 participants from 10 countries took part in total.
The working sessions were combined in classroom presentations for the theoretical parts, and on-ice sessions with very practical lessons and team work on ice.
Experts and members of the IIF Facilities Committee covered several aspects during the seminar including water properties, heat, humidity, ventilation, air conditioning aspects - very important in large parts of the Asia and Oceania region ,-ice making tools and supplies, hockey markings, in ice advertisements, ice-resurfacer operation and safety, daily, weekly and monthly equipment routine checks, energy saving solutions and guidelines for sustainable arenas, as well as best and successful practices available.
During the seminar al kind of questions have been answered related not only to the ice as such but mostly about how to successfully run a hockey arena, how to guarantee best possible and safe conditions for kids, juniors, pro hockey players and how to cooperate with other ice sports, how to prepare and expose in-ice advertising and more.
"We learned new ice-making techniques, new technologies, a new way how to make good ice," Hassan Mostafa, the manager of the Zayed Ice Rink in Abu Dhabi, said after the seminar. "From the IIHF's ice experts, we learned the proper way to take the measurements, how to paint the ice and how to put the under-ice advertising." The IHF Facilities Committee members were also invited to visit the Dubai Mall ice rink with a request to find best options and advice on how to deal with extra humidity in that arena. Based on the committee's recommendations, the rink management changed few technical details and will work on additional changes to be able to secure good ice quality for the Emirates Hockey League, international exhibition games and tournaments.
The IIHF made investments and purchased an ice making and maintenance equipment kit and supplies necessary for the seminar. Now it will permanently stay in the Asia and Oceania region and can be used on a regular basis for similar events in the future "Together with the IlHF Facilities Committee we decided to have an ice making and management seminar here in Asia after a long break," said Aivaz Omorkanov, IHF Regional Vice-President for Asia &Oceania. "We started the discussions with our member national associations that it is very important to have such a seminar in our region and ti will be good help to our members, especially for those with only one or two ice rinks, to know how to make a good ice, how to manage it al year around. It is very important to us and Ibelieve that we did everything to have as many participants as possible on-site here in Abu Dhabi."
Viesturs Koziols, IHF Council member and chairperson of the IHF Facilities Committee, was satisfied with the seminar and its outcome.
"Seeing such enthusiasm and very positive, eager-to-learn attitude from all participants I can only thank everybody who made the seminar possible," Koziols said.
"The Facilities Committee members and experts are full of energy to organize similar events on a regular basis in regions where ice hockey is in a development stage. Knowledge on how to make good ice and how to successfully maintain ice hockey arenas is equally or even more important as in established hockey countries."
Farzad Hooshidari, Iran ice hockey NT captain and manager of Iran Mall IceBox was unique participant from Iran in this valuable seminar in Abu Dhabi.
Upcoming Events
The 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Asia and Oceania Championship
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia February62ot March5,2023
Indonesia, India, Iran, Macau (China) (TBC), Mongolia, Singapore, Thailand, the UAE and Uzbekistan
IIHF ICE HOCKEY WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION Ill, Group B BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA,
Sarajevo 27 February -5March
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong
The 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania Championship
Thailand, Bangkok 14-21 May 2023 India, Iran, Kuwait, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the UAE
Elevation!
Iran ice hockey becomes an independent association
By the decision of the Ministry of Sports and Youth, ice hockey was separated from the skating federation and joined the sub-complex of the skiing and winter sports federation as "Ice Hockey Association".
According to the public relations report of the Iran National Olympic Committee: With regard to the powers derived from Part 11, Clause A, Article 4 of the law, the goals, duties and powers of the Ministry of Sports and Youth and its executive instructions and the approval dated 24/09/2022 of the Ministry's high authority, new decisions regarding the field related to the Winter Olympics were taken as follows:
Based on this, the field of ice hockey, as a field that is present in the Asian Games and the Winter Olympics, is separated from the skating federation and in the form of "Ice Hockey Association" it joins the subset of the skiing
and winter sports federation.
Speed ice skating, pursuit ice skating and ice figure skating will b e separated from the skating federation and will be consolidated in the form of "Ice Skating Association" and will operate under the Ski and Winter Sports Federation as well.
Federation of Skiing and Winter Sports according to the approval letter No. 22403/55102E dated 27/05/2020 of the Honorable Board of Ministers (paragraph 1) compiles the bylaws of each of the above two associations and after the approval of the Ministry and the approval of the General Assembly of the Federation will perform mentioned law.
Iran's men's national ice hockey team was the runner-up of the Division IV World Championships last year in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
Kurdistan is beautiful...
6 Freezingly Fascinating Facts About Ice Hockey
By Donella Crigger
- 1.Hockey pucks are kept on ice.
Pucks are kept frozen until they are needed in a game. Amodern puck is made of rubber, and it becomes flimsy
and bounces when it gets warm. Freezing the hockey pucks prevents them from bouncing, so players can more easily control them. On average, 12 pucks are used in NHL games because they thaw so fast.
- 2.The first pucks were made of cow dung.
Legend has it that the first pucks used in outdoor Before 1914, hockey refsused their hands to place the puck between the two player’s sticks in a faceoff. For obvious reasons, this wasn't a good idea. After many cuts, bruises, and likely broken bones, they beg and ropping it between the pucks instead.
3.Ice in the rink is less than an inch thick.
The ice layer in a professional hockey rink is only 3⁄4 inches (1.90 cm) thick and is kept at -9°C (16°F). Thinner ice layers a low the water to freeze faster and harder. The thicker the ice, the softer and slower it becomes.
- 4.Referees drop the puck ice. for a good reason.
Before 1914, hockey refs used their hands to place the puck between the two player’s sticks in a faceoff. For obvious reasons, this wasn't a good idea. After many cuts, bruises, and likely broken
bones, they began dropping it between the pucks instead.
What happens if both of a team's goalies are injured and unable t o play? Fans step in to help! Anyone can serve as a backup goalie, including someone in the audience. In 2020, an emergency goalie from the audience filled in as the Carolina Hurricanes' netminder and got the win for the team.
- 6.Players can lose 5 Kg or more during a game.
During a hockey game, goalies can lose as much as 10 pounds of water weight. Goalies sweat a lot because of the lights, the thick, padded layers, and the fact that they play the entire game. To combat dehydration-induced muscle cramps, goalies consume sports drinks, pickle juice, and mustard packets.
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HOPE, PEACE, EQUALITY...
WE LIVE THE DREAM OF THE FUTURE! Editorial
These colorless days of ours are full of sadness. Maybe the whole world is full of happiness due to approaching the last days of the year, but we are not happy.
Arthur Schopenhauer, a well-known German philosopher is famous for his pessimism. However, he was not without solutions to the grim reality of life. He believed that art could liberate us from suffering. We believe that sports have the same effect...
Wish all of you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Inside This Issue
PG. 3
Another beginning!
PG. 4
Upcoming Events
PG. 7
Hockey tournament among Islamic countries
PG.8
Iran in Hockey Hall of Fame!
PG.9
Grazia's Captain Farzad! PG.10 - Green Fuel!
PG.11
Balochistan is beautiful...!
PG.12
Ice Hockey popularity in the world
Another beginning!
By Iran Ski and Winter Sports Federation
Iran's ice hockey has made significant progress in recent years. The Ice Hockey Association of the Ski and Winter Sports Federation, which has recently started working in this federation, intends to hold Iran Ice Hockey Pro League competitions with the participation of 4men's teams and 5 women's teams next month.
These competitions will be held in men's and women's divisions in January and February of next year (2023) in the
adult age group in Iran Mal Icebox in Tehran province.
Upcoming Events
First hockey tournament among Islamic countries
Kazan, Russia january 13 to 19, 2023
UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iran, Oman, the combined team of Algeria, Tunisia, Lebanon and Morocco, and the national team of The Republic of Tatarstan
Iran Hockey League (IHL)
Tehran, Iran, Iran Mall Icebox, January and February 2023
IIHFGlobalGirl'sGame
Tehran, Iran, Iran Mall IcebOX, February 18-19, 2023
The 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Asia and Oceania Championship
Ulaanbaatar,MongoliaFebruary26ot March5,2023
Indonesia, India, Iran, Macau (China) (TBC), Mongolia, Singapore, Thailand, the UAE and Uzbekistan
IIHF ICE HOCKEY WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION III, Group B
BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA, Sarajevo 72 February - 5 Macrh
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong
The 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania Championship
Thailand, Bangkok 14-21 May 2023
India, Iran, Kuwait, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the UAE
Iran Hockey Association 2023 Calendar
Hockey tournament among Islamic countries, Kazan
by NATIONALTEAMSOFICEHOCKEY
From January 31 to January 91 Kazan will host the first international hockey tournament among Islamic countries. The decision to hold the competition was made at the international summit "Russia - Islamic World: Kazan Summit 2022".
The men's national teams of the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iran, and Oman, the combined team of Algeria, Tunisia, Lebanon and Morocco, as well as the national team of The Republic of Tatarstan, will take part in the competition. Representatives of the Iran, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Tatarstan and the combined team of Oman and Bahrain will play in the women's division.
Mansur Usmanov, Executive Director of HC Ak Bars:
We are glad that the decisions of the "Russia - Islamic World: Kazan Summit 2022". are being implemented in various sectors, including sports. It will be a great honor for us in Tatarstan to represent the great Russian hockey in the countries of the Islamic world. It is very pleasant that a common faith and sport bring nations together and help build partnerships between states. We hope that this tournament will be just the beginning of a long-term cooperation and will help the development of men's and women's hockey in the countries of the Middle East and North Africa.
Previously, Andrey Ryabov, vice-president of the Ice Hockey Federation of the Republic of Tatarstan, announced the project for the World Islamic Hockey League to be developed.
"We came up with the idea of creating an Islamic hockey league in Tatarstan. Ialready have documents to start the initiative, even the draft charter. I have been repeatedly told that Muslims from different countries are ready to participate. We see a great demand, but so far, we have nothing concrete. We are negotiating with 20 states," Ryabov was quoted as saying by Tatar-inform.
The sports official also noted the difficulties with the finance. According to him, hockey is a rather expensive sport. Therefore, it is wrong to charge the costs of organizing the tournament to the republic, and that it will first be necessary to work out the economic basis of the competition.
Iran in Hockey Hall of Fame!
The Hockey Hal of Fame is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup in Downtown Toronto, inside Brookfield Place, and a historic Bank of Montreal building. The Hockey Hal of Fame has hosted International Ice Hockey Federation (IHF) exhibits and the IIHF Hal of Fame since 1998.
While many of the Hall of Fame exhibits are dedicated to the NHL, there is a large section devoted to hockey leagues and players outside North America. On June 29, 1998, the World of Hockey Zone opened. tI is a 6,000 square feet (600 m2) area dedicated to international hockey, including World and Olympic competition and contains profiles on al IHF member countries.
Honor roll for the IIHF Hall of Fame in the World of Hockey Zone
The IIHF agreed to transfer its exhibits from the International Hockey Hall of Fame to the Hockey Hal of Fame in 1998. The World of Hockey Zone is sponsored by Tissot. The zone includes the IiIHF Hockey Hall of Fame honor roll, listing each inductee by country and year of enshrinement. Each national association member of the lIHF is represented in the collection of artifacts in the display, which includes many national team hockey jerseys. Recently, the jersey number 51 of Iran's national hockey team, which belongs to Farshad Moghadasi, has been exhibited in this hall.
Grazia's Captain Farzad !
Farzad Hooshidri, the proud and veteran captain of Iran's national hockey team, was selected as the director of Galaxy Hockey Academy in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and started his career in this academy. In Farzad's sports archives, there are brilliant records, among which he is the runner-up in the 2022 |IHF World Championship Division VI in Kyrgyzstan. We wish dear Farzad the best in his new experience. The following text was published by Galaxy Hockey Academy to announce Farzad's presence:
"ANNOUNCEMENTS - Galaxy new term 2023 We are pleased to share the following updates for the new term commencing January 2023 New coach joins GHA - Silver and Gold medalist Coach Farzad who took a few Galaxy guest coach sessions last term joins Galaxy Hockey Academy on a permanent basis! We received so many private messages after the guest sessions he ran last term we just had to do everything we could to make Coach Farzad a permanent part of the setup at Galaxy Hockey Academy. Coach Farzad is an extremely experienced coach running an academy with 600 players and has extensive experience in developing strong hockey players. He has worked with complete beginners at al ages, al the way up to seasoned professionals. Farzad himself has played Ice Hockey and coached at a national level, being national team captain having participated in several international tournaments and winning the silver medal in the World Championships. He is also a prolific inline skater, participating in the inline world"
GreenFuel!
The first training camp of the Iran national youth ice hockey team to participate in the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Asia and Oceania Championships in Mongolia has been held on Friday, December30, 2022 at 9:00 am at the Iran Mall ice rink with the presence of 39 athletes from all over Iran the cities of Tabriz, Qazvin, Isfahan, Qom, Varamin, Shahr-e-Rey, and Tehran.
In this camp, the following training programs were planned for the participants:
Skating skill measurement, puck control and shooting control skill measurement, Passing, receivingand shooting skills measurement, line measurement of team individual skills of players in the form of three teams and in the game for 30 minutes.
In addition, it was decided that the players will attend 4 sessions per week (two sessions with the presence of Arman Bahri and two sessions of Mohammadreza Sheikh Jafari) in ice rink free times for skating, power skating, etc. Also, one session on Fridays belongs to team training.
the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U 18 Asia and Oceania Championships in Mongolia is scheduled t o be held from January 1 to 18th 2023 in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of this country.
Balochistan is beautiful...
Ice Hockey popularity in the world
by Iran Mall Ice Box
Most people think of ice hockey as as port that is popular only in countries like Canada, the United States, and Russia. However, ice hockey is actually played all over the world. In fact, there are more than 70 countries that have ice hockey federations. Ice Hockey i n Asia i s the fasted growing sport i n the region. This page consists of 14 countries from A-L. 10 countries are members of the International Ice Hockey Federation, 1 country is a associate member and 3 countries are not members. Three countries on this page have played at the Winter Olympics, Australia, Japan and Kazakhstan.
Over the past few years, ice hockey has seen a surge in popularity around the world. While the sport has long been popular in countries like Canada, the United States, and Russia, it is now gaining a following in places like China, India, Iran, and South Korea. There are a number of factors that have contributed to the growth of ice hockey globally. The first is the increasing popularity of the NHL. The league has done a great job of promoting the sport through initiatives like the NHL Global Series, which has seen NHL teams play pre-season games in Europe and Asia. Second, the growth of online streaming services has made it easier for people to watch ice hockey from anywhere in the world. No longer do fans need to be near a rink to enjoy the sport. Finally, the expansion of youth hockey programs in countries like China and India is giving more people t h e opportunity to try the sport. As ice hockey becomes more accessible, i t s popularity i s sure t o continue t o grow. Hockey has long been regarded as a huge market in China, with NHL teams sending players and ambassadors there to grow the sport. Chinese businesses began returning the favor b y placing advertisements i n NHL arenas (O.R.G. packaging is by far the most prominent).
According t o t h e International Ice Hockey Federation (IHF), there are approximately 1.64 million athletes who compete in organized hockey. Participation in USA hockey has increased by 20% in the past decade, which has helped t o keep the sport growing. According to the IIHF, Canada has the highest participation rates i n hockey. North America received 23 of the 30 first-round picks in the 2016 NHL Draft, which was indicative of the global market dominance of the region. In terms of number, Europe has the most countries on the list, with the Czech Republic, Finland, Sweden, Germany,Switzerland, and France among them. Despite the game's potential, the game's expansion will not take place i n other parts of the world due to barriers such as the need for ice and the high cost of participation.
Ice hockey is becoming popular in Europe, with the sport now accounting for more than a quarter of the population. When the NHL went to a three- game schedule in the 19/20 season, 976 players took part in one or more games.
According to statistics, more than a third of those players were born and trained in Europe. None the less, the number of hockey fans watching the game has dropped by an astonishing 61% in comparison to the previous year. Despite the fact that the numiews increased by%2 in2021,itfellin lebe continued)
CONTACT US!
Iran Mall IceBox, Tehran, Iran https://www.instagram.com/icebox_ir/
+9821 28424862
WhatsApp: +989339062383
_________________________________________________________________________________J A N U A R Y 2 0 2 3___________________________________________________________________________________
HOPE, PEACE, EQUALITY... WE LIVE THE DREAM OF THE FUTURE!
When talking about Islamic countries, usually the first thing that comes to mind are countries with tough climates, deserts, oases, and such things. But this time in Kazan, the capital of the Republic of Tatarstan, hockey players from Islamic countries gathered t o participate i n a tournament named after Islamic countries for the first time. This positive movement of the Tatars is much appreciated. Regardless of religion, race, and skin color, sport is a sweet and pleasant phenomenon. Thank you, Tatarstan!
Inside This Issue
PG. 2
The First but not the last!
PG. 3
Should appreciated, should be followed!
PG. 4
Upcoming Events
PG.7
Iranian Leopards in Tatarstan
PG.9
MVPS
PG.11
PhotoAlbum
PG.15
Association for the Development of Ice Hockey
PG.17
Valuable Experience
PG.18
Golestan is beautiful...!
The First but not the last!
By Orient News
From January 41 to17, the first ice hockey tournament among teams of Islamic countries and the Republic of Tatarstan (Russia) held in Kazan. LC "UPC "Tatneft - Ak Bars" together with ANO DPO "Kazan International Institute for Cooperation with Countries of Africa and the Middle East" organized the First Tournament that will unite the entire Islamic hockey.
The purpose of this tournament is to strengthen ties between Russia and the countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in the field of sports. The tournament was held in Kazan from January 31 to 19. The decision to hold the competition was made at the international summit "Russia — the Islamic World: Kazan Summit 2022" "We hope that this tournament will be the beginning of big events, and strong relationships will help promote hockey, both professional and children's, youth, student, al hockey in al countries. When we started talking about this event, we were joined by representatives of other sports who want to hold the same tournaments in Kazan. This includes tennis, equestrian sports, and motorsports," Nail Maganov, president of the Ak Bars hockey Club and the Tatarstan Hockey Federation, said at the opening of the hockey tournament among Islamic countries on Saturday.
The first ice hockey tournament among the teams of Islamic countries and the Republic of Tatarstan was held from January 41 to 71 in Kazan on the ice of the Tatneft Arena and the Sports Palace. 21 men's and 5 women's amateur teams take part in the competition. Hockey players from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Oman, Bahrain, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgyzstan played in the men's tournament, and players from Algeria, Morocco, and Lebanon played in the combined team. Tatarstan was represented by the national team of the Ak Bars system and a team of hockey veterans of the republic.
Over 300 hockey players from 41 Islamic states are participated in the tournament.
Should appreciated, should be followed!
Mr. Nail Maganov, President of the Hockey Federation of the Republic of Tatarstan: "I thank al the athletes for participating in the tournament, who have come a long way from their countries to Kazan for the sake of their favorite game, for the popularization and development of hockey. It is a great honor for us that the first such tournament was held in Tatneft Arena. We are glad to be a point of uniting people, we are always open and ready for any cooperation"
The famous Iranian poet, Ferdowsi, says in one of his famous verses in Shahnameh: "The background actor should not be used. Only one experienced brave warrior is better than a hundred thousand." Mr. Maganov, with his brilliant idea and extraordinary movement in holding the hockey tournament of Islamic countries, took a long and historic step in the direction of the growth of hockey and, more importantly, the closeness of Islamic countries the field of sports.
Upcoming Events
Iran Hockey League (IHL)
Tehran, Iran, Iran Mall Icebox,
January and February 2023
IIHF Global Girl's Game
Tehran, Iran, Iran Mall IceboX,
February 18-19, 2023
IIHF ICE HOCKEY WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION III, Group B
BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA, Sarajevo
February 27th - March 5th
Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong
The 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Asia and Oceania Championship
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
March 11th to 18th, 2023
Indonesia, India, Iran, Macau (China) (TBC), Mongolia, Singapore, Thailand, the UAE and Uzbekistan
The 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania Championship
Thailand, Bangkok 14-21 May 2023 India, Iran, Kuwait, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the UAE
LTP (Learn to Play) West Program Series
United Arab Emirates,
Abu Dhabi March 3rd - 9th
Iran Hockey Association 2023 Calendar
Iranian Leopards in Tatarstan
By Iran Mall IceBox
Iran's national teams participated in the first ice hockey tournament of Islamic countries in Kazan, the capital of Russian Tatarstan, under the name "Iran Mall" in both men's and women's divisions.The Iranian women's national team, which was led by Azam Sanai, was sent to this tournament with 20 players and was placed in the same group with the teams of Tatarstan, UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.
The men's ice hockey team, which is preparing for the World Championship in Bosnia, was led by Kaveh Sedki and went to this tournament with 18 players and met the teams of the Emirates, Oman and the selected team of Tatarstan. The Tatarstan team is one of the prominent teams of the KHL league.
In the men's section, the teams of Saudi Arabia, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tatarstan, Bahrain and the joint team of Morocco, Algeria and Lebanon competed in two groups.
In the first day of the tournament, The Iranian men's ice hockey team defeated Oman 12-6 while the Iranian women's squad lost to Tatarstan 4-1 in the tournament on the first game.
In the second day Iranian girls won UAE 4-0 in the second game and Bahrain 10-0 in the 3" one, but Men's team lost against UAE 6-9. The Iranian girls won their 4th game against KSA 3-4 (to).
The Iranian women's national ice hockey team became the runner-up of the Islamic tournament by accepting the defeat in the final match against the representative of the host country. This team, which participated in the tournament with the support of Iran Mal, despite its many efforts, was defeated by the host team in penalty shootouts and finished as runner-up.
The Iranian women's national team, which previously defeated the teams of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Oman, and had only one defeat against Tatarstan in its record, was once again defeated by the experience and strength of this opponent in the final match and in a breathtaking match. Iran's national team lost the normal time with a 5-5 draw and then lost the result in penalty shootouts 4-5.
Tatarstan has participated in international ice hockey events since 1948 and currently has more than a hundred training and competition rinks.
The Iranian men's ice hockey team also won the runner-up position in the third group of the tournament with abetter goal average than the teams of Oman and the host of the tournament, Kazan, Russia. Iran men's ice hockey team faced the host representative in their last match and finally lost the match with a score of 7-3, but due to the better goal average, they were ranked second in this group. In this way, at the end of the first international ice hockey tournament among Islamic countries in Kazan, the Iran men's national team, after the UAE team and with a better goal average than Oman and the AK Bars club, became the runner-up in the third group of the tournament, which was called "Watan" (Homeland) by the host. The men's tournament was held independently in three groups of four teams. nI the first group called "Doosti" (Friendship), the matches were played with the participation of the teams of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan and a selected team of players from Algeria, Morocco and Lebanon. In the second group named "Ihsan" (Kindness) consisting of teams from Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Tatarstan, the Tatarstan team was the first and the Turkmenistan team was the second.
The Iranian women's team also won the second place and the silver medal ni the group named "Mehhebbet" (Affection).
Both the Iranian national teams in the women's and men's sections participated in this competition with the support of Iran Mall.
Iran Women's squad:
Azam SANAEl, Elham MODIR DEHGHAN, Saba MAZAHERI, Hanieh AGHAMOHAMMADI, Diba FARZAMNIA, Diana FARZAMNIA, Zahra REZAEl, Negar KHORRAM, Mahdieh NOWROOZI, Shabnam ARAB, Fatemeh SHAHSAVAND, Zohreh HASANI, Zahra GHASEMI, Asal HEIDARI, Hadis KHALAJ, Azin GHAROONI, Negar ARJMAND, Fatemeh ESMAEILI, Helia SOHANI
Iran Men's squad:
Jalal KAYHANFAR, Farshad MOGHADDASi, Mohammad Amin KOREI, Mohsen AGHAMOHAMMADI, Danial SAROOGHI, Abbas DEHGHANI, Mohamad Matin GHAHHARZADEH, Nima MEHRABAN, Kian YAZDANI, Amir MAHDIOON, Mohammad SHAHSAHEB, Mahmoodreza MAHDAVIAN, Seyed Farzad GHORAB, Mohammad Reza SHEIKHJAFARI, Arshia GHAFOORI, Reza POORHASHEMI, Alirerza MAHDAVI, Farbod ABDOLLAHI
MVPs
The first international ice hockey tournament among Islamic countries, Kazan 2023 PhotoAlbum
Association for the Development of Ice Hockey of Islamic Countries established in Kazan
by Ak Bars
The first meeting of the working group of the Association for the Development of Ice Hockey of Islamic Countries was held on January 71 at the international hockey forum of the first tournament among the Islamic countries Kazan Hockey Cup.
Delegates from 41 countries, the heads of hockey federations of the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Algeria, Oman, Bahrain, Iran, Mongolia, Lebanon, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Turkey and representatives of the Hockey Federation of the Republic of Tatarstan reached an agreement on cooperation and collaboration in the development of hockey, organization of joint sports tournaments and experience exchange between the federations.
President of the Ice Hockey Federation of the Republic of Tatarstan Nail Maganov was elected the head of the Association. President of the Ice Hockey Federation of Kyrgyzstan Anvar Omorkanov was elected vice-president for the Asian region, and Hamel Al Kubaisi, president of the UAE Winter Sports Federation was elected vice-president for the Middle Eastern region. Headquarters of organization will be located in Kazan, Russia.
The purpose of the organization -the development of hockey in the states with the leading religion of Islam, the development and popularization of hockey in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. The cooperation will allow the countries to emulate best practices of Russian hockey and to get the access to players, coaches and referees educational programs.
Anvar Omorkanov, president of the Kyrgyzstan Ice Hockey Federation: "Tatarstan has a great history of hockey development, there is the country's leading club Ak Bars with the best Russian players and the best training conditions created for players at the team's facility. We are amazed by the level of infrastructure for children's and adult hockey, and we are very happy that we could take part in such a tournament.
Cooperation with the Tatarstan Ice Hockey Federation will be a great impetus for the development of hockey in Islamic countries. By adopting the experience of hockey world leaders, our colleagues from the Middle East and Africa will be able to do even more to popularize and develop our game.
There are still many Islamic countries in the world where hockey is also played, so our organization will grow with time. One of the association's goals is to include hockey in the Islamic Solidarity Games, which will give our sport an even greater impetus.
Hamel Al Qubaisi, President of the UAE Winter Sports Federation:
'Great thanks to Kazan and Tatarstan for their hospitality, to al participants for the tournament, the forum and our meeting. We are glad that now our cooperation in hockey reached a new level.
The popularity of hockey in our countries is increasing, in the UAE the demand for lessons already exceeds our capabilities, especially hockey is attractive for girls.
Tatarstan's conditions for developing sports impressed al the guests, and it was not for nothing that we chose Kazan as the headquarters of our new organization. It is the northernmost capital of the Islamic world and the hockey leader among Muslim regions. We are sure that our joint work will achieve high results and we will do the best for the development of hockey in the world.
Thank you, guys!
According to the rules of the tournament…each team could use five foreign players. In the meantime, the Iran women's team did not use any foreign players. Only "Ms.Anzhelika EGOROVA" was in charge of leading this team as a guest coach.
In the men's team, however, there were three players from Russia who played very well. "Fedor GUSYNIN", "Vladimir KOROLEV", and "Aleksandr OBUKHOV". Fedor became MVP in Iran vs Oman match in the first day whereas Aleksandr name was put in the tournament.
Valuable Experience
The players and technical staff of the Iran national team found a golden opportunity on the sidelines of the tournament to see three KHL matches at the superb TatNeft Arena in beautiful city, Kazan. An experience that will not be forgotten!
The capacity of the TatNeft Arena is 10,000 and was opened in 2005. The arena is home to Ak Bars Kazan of the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL).
Golestan is beautiful...
CONTACT US!
Iran Mal IceBox, Tehran, Iran
https://www.instagram.com/icebox_ir/ icehockey@skifed.ir
+982128424862
WhatsApp: +989339062383
__________________________________________________________________________________F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 3___________________________________________________________________________________
HOPE, PEACE, EQUALITY...
WE LIVE THE DREAM OF THE FUTURE!
Greek philosopher, Aristotle, in more than 2300 years ago said: "We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."
The Iran hockey league is only two years old, but it is already clear that i t will become a prestigious youth. From the heart o f a consistent and strong league, very bright talents will be found among the youth of the country. The youth who will build a bright future. From now on, we are counting the days for the third league...
Inside This Issue
PG. 2
The Second!
PG. 4
Upcoming Events
PG.6
IHL Photo Album
PG.11
Let's Talk about the WHISTLE!
PG.12
IHL MVPs
PG.14
The IIHF Girls World Game (GGG)
PG.15
Youngsters are ready to go to the Land of the Eternal Blue Sky
PG.16
It'sWomen'sTurn! PG.18 -Khuzestan is beautiful...
TheSecond!
by Iran Mall Ice Box
The second season of the Premier Ice Hockey League (IHL),which started at the beginning of February with the participation of 4 teams in the men's section and 5teams in the women's section at the Iran Mal ice rink, has passed its final matches.
In the last match of this season in the men's section on Saturday, February 18th, RadinTire and M.R teams compete together. This game was held in a situation where the Radin Tire team had confirmed its championship in the men's section, but its rival was trying to win second place. At the end of this exciting match, which was held at the Iran Mal ice rink with the presence fo more than a thousand enthusiastic spectators and with live VT broadcasting, Radin Tire defeated M.R. with a score of 3-2 to name as the champion of the second Iran Ice Hockey Premier League.
At the end of these competitions, Icebox teams with 01 points and M.R with 9 points ranked second and third respectively.
In the final match of the second season of the women's premier ice hockey league, which was held at the Iran mall ice rink with the presence of five teams, the Ice Box team succeed to defeat the Farmanieh team with a score of 3:2 in the penalty shout out and became the runner-up of this season. The M.R. team had secured its championship before the final week.
Upcoming Events
IIHF ICE HOCKEY WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP DIVISION III, Group B BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA,
Sarajevo February
27th -March 5th
LTP (Learn t o Play) West Program Series United Arab Emirates,
Abu Dhabi
March 3rd -8th
The 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Asia a n d Oceania Championship
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
March 1th to 18th, 2023
Indonesia, India, Iran, Macau (China) (TBC), Mongolia, Singapore, Thailand, the UAE and Uzbekistan
The 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania Championship
Thailand, Bangkok
14-21 May 2023
India, Iran, Kuwait, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the UAE
IHL Photo Albume
Let's Talk About The Whistle!
IHL Women’s Team
IHL Men’s Team
Celebrating girls in hockey with one game around the world
The IHF Girls World Game (GGG)
began in 2015, a unique event created to unite the hockey community by featuring players from around the world in one game, celebrate in hockey.
The global girls game Global Girls' Game took place 18-19 February 2023. The weekend-long game between the Team Blue and Team White players started with a prologue in several countries and then on early Saturday in Australia before reaching Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe and North, Central and South America.
The Iranian leg of the game has operated for the first time in Iran on February 19th at 20:30 global simultaneously, with the participation of teams from different cities of Iran hosted by the Icebox team at the Iran Mall Icebox, Tehran, Iran.
Thank you and Congratulations to the over 80 participants of the Iranian 2023 IHF Global Girls' Game!
Youngsters are ready to go to the Land of the Eternal Blue Sky
by Iran Mall IceBox
Iran national U18 ice hockey team should be go to the 2023 IHF Ice Hockey U18 Asia and Oceania Championship in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia on March 17, 1401 for the first time in history.
In this tournament, the Iran team will compete with the countries of Mongolia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, UAE and Thailand in Steppe Arena.
Iran's U18 national team continues its preparatory training under the supervision of Kaveh Sedghi (head coach),
Mohammad Reza Sheikh Jafari (coach), Kian Farsad (coach) and Arman Bahri (coach), who are al players and champions of this field. The promising young people of Iran hope that by trying and gaining experience in such tournaments, they can achieve more success in senior's competitions as well.
It's Women's Turn!
by Iran Mall IceBox
In line with the development of the ice hockey sport in the world, especially in the women's section, which is very important for the World Federation (IHF), 2023 |IHF WOMEN'S ICE HOCKEY SUMMIT was held in Ensana Thermal Margitsziget Health Spa, Budapest, Hungary from February 23 - 26", 2023.
IHF President, Mr. Luc Tardif, also attended in summit and give a speech as well.
Today, the presence of ice hockey in the sports basket of any country shows the growth and development of that country, and in this sense, IIHF is also one of the influential federations in the field of international sports.
Ms. Faezeh MODABBER, one of the experienced players of the national team and one of the current coaches of the
Iran Hockey League (IHL), is delegated to this summit on behalf of the Ice Hockey Association of the Ski and Winter Sports Federation of Iran.
Khuzestan is beautiful...
CONTACT US!
Iran Mall IceBox, Tehran, Iran
https://www.instagram.com/icebox_ir/
+9821 28424862
WhatsApp: +989339062383
__________________________________________________________________________________M A R C H 2 0 2 3___________________________________________________________________________________
HOPE, PEACE, EQUALITY...
WE LIVE THE DREAM OF THE FUTURE!
"Abhijit Naskar" one of the youngest world's famous Neuroscientists has a brilliant sentence: "One who wins always is not the wise one, rather wise is the one who knows where to lose."
This month was a strange month for Iran's hockey. The Men's National Team i n Bosnia and t h e U18 boys in Mongolia lost one match after another t o their opponents to know that they have t o work harder and learn "How t o Snatch Victory from The Jaws of Defeat". This victory will not be far away...
Inside This Issue
PG.2
Nowruz!
PG. 3
Upcoming Events
PG. 5
A beautiful city called Sarajevo
PG. 32
LTP: A Landmark Program and a Pioneer Step
PG.34
Mongolia... Land of the Eternal Blue Sky
PG.50
Iranian Young Leopards
PG.52
David MINARIK in Tehran
PG.53
Mazandaran is beautiful...
Nowruz, meaning "new day", is an ancestral festivity marking the first day of spring and the renewal of nature. It includes rituals, ceremonies and cultural events, as well as the enjoyment of a special meal with loved ones. New clothes are worn, visits are made to family and friends, and gifts, especially for children, are exchanged. Celebrated for over 3000 years in the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East and other regions, it promotes values of peace and solidarity between generations and within families a s well as reconciliation and neighborliness.
In 2010, the "International Day of Nowruz" was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in its resolution A/RES/64/253. This Resolution welcomes the efforts of
Member States where Nowruz is celebrated to preserve and develop the culture and traditions related t o Nowruz, and encourages Member States to make efforts to raise awareness about Nowruz and to organize annual events i n commemoration of this festivity.
"Nauryz, Navruz, Nawrouz, Nevruz, Nooruz, Novruz, Nowrouz, Nowruz - this celebration of the arrival of spring is as rich in names as it is in traditions. No matter what name you call it by, this shared festivity has brought communities together across countries and regions for
more than 3,000 years". Nowruz later spread across the vibrant trade routes of the Silk Road, and along the way incorporated new " new social, religious a n d cultural influences," UNESCO said.
It's now celebrated by a wide array of ethnicities and religious groups in countries beyond Iran, including Kurdistan, Tajikstan, Uzbakistan, India, Afghanistan, Turkey and Pakistan.
The painting depicts Haft-sin symbols of Nowruz being related to elements of Fire, Earth, Air, Water, and the three life forms of Humans, Animals and Plants.
Upcoming Events
David Minarik Training Camp
on Player's Individual Skills Development, Skating Development, and Game Situation Skills
Tehran, Iran Mall IceBox 03-07 April 2023
The 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania Championship
Thailand, Bangkok 14-21 Mya2023 India, Iran, Kuwait, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the UAE
A beautiful city called Sarajevo
by Iran Mall IceBox
Sarajevo, the capital of the beautiful country of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which dates back to the Stone Age, is the city that sparked World War ,I a city that has suffered many bitter and sweet events and wars against Humanity and genocide, this time was the host of one of the most important ice hockey tournaments of the year. The IHF 2023 World Championship Division IB held from February 27th to March 5th with the participation of national teams of Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Kyrgyzstan, Iran, and the host country Bosnia ni the ice rink of this city called Skenderija.
The exciting thing is that the Sarajevo tournament si the second appearance of the Iran team in the world championship after last year in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, and this time Iranian should competed with their rivals in a higher division in Group IB. The rookie team of Iran participated in this tournament with hopes to do their best to achieve the most crucial target, i.e to gain valuable international experience.
We are Iran ... We are Ice Hockey ...
Iran's national ice hockey team won its first match in the world championships with a victory against Malaysia.
The IHF World Championship Division IB started February 27* between six countries in one group, when Iran national team met the first Asian country, Malaysia national team in their first match at the Skenderija Arena in Sarajevo, Bosnia at 19:00.
Iran national team, who are experiencing their second season of participation in the World Championship, managed to defeat Malaysia with a score of 14:4 and take the first step firmly by presenting a beautiful and powerful game.
Iran national ice hockey team lost against the Hong Kong national team 1-11 in their second match of IIHF World Championship Division IIIB in Sarajevo, Bosnia.
Iranian players, who have little experience in tournaments at this level, gave up the game with a heavy result. According to ice hockey experts, the difference in the level of their game with Hong Kong players was not so much. With this loss, the Iranian team should hope for future games.
The Iran national ice hockey team lost against the powerful host team in their third competition in the World Championship Division IIIB in Sarajevo. The Iran team, which had started the game powerfully, could not continue its good start and could only score 2 goals against Bosnia's 9 goals.
The Iran national team played in its fourth game against the leader of the tournament, Kyrgyzstan, during which the national team of our country was defeated 18-0 to record the third defeat of the Iranian team in this tournament. This was despite the fact that last year in a lower group and in Kyrgyzstan itself, Iran got a better result and lost 13-1.
Although the Iran national team expected to face strong competitors in WMIIIB in Bosnia, they imagined a better position than this. For this reason, they tried their best to beat Singapore, the team that lost versus Iran in last year's tournament in a tough competition, once again. But the Iranians did not know that neither Singapore is the same team in the Kyrgyzstan tournament nor them. The story of Iran's participation in this difficult tournament ended with this match, but a more exciting story has just begun.
Winning a medal in IIHF World Championship Division IIIB next year...
LTP: A Landmark Program and a Pioneer Step
Learn to Play (LTP) was created in 2000 and its main objective is to give boys and girls aged six through nine “the ultimate hockey experience”. As stated in its introduction: “Hockey at this level should be based on having fun, participation by all, and being taught basic “When you compare it to the Coach Development Framework, the Learn to Play Manual is very similar but a bit more detailed,” said IIHF Membership Development Manager Aku Nieminen. “It gives easy-to-apply guidance for the different stakeholders to use when introducing the game to beginners.” The manual is divided into six sections: Introduction, Leadership Coaching Basics, Teaching and Learning, Organization and Planning, Playing Rules for Players under 10 Years Old and Practice Manual.
Whereas the CDF covers all aspects of coaching all skill and age levels, the coach’s primary role in LTP is teaching the basic skills of hockey to beginner players. That also means it has to be geared to less experienced coaches. Hockey skills. This program is based on these ideals.”
The goal of LTP is for each player to:
- Have fun and enjoy hockey
- Be involved in activities that are challenging and ongoing
- Receive reinforcement from coaches
- Experience success to build positive self-esteem
- Play in unstructured activities
- Have adapted game situations
- Be introduced to the concepts of cooperation and sportsmanship
- Increase physical development
- Refine basic motor patterns
The LTP in the Asia and Oceania region, which was held under the supervision of experienced IIHF professors from March 3rd to 8th, 2023 at the Zayed Complex in Abu Dhabi, ended with great achievements for Iranian ice hockey. Mrs. Azam Senai, coach of the women's national team, head of the training committee and ice hockey instructor of the Iranian Ice Hockey Association, on the last day, received the certificate of participation in this valuable course from the head of the Asian Federation of this discipline, Aivaz Omerkhanov, while in the workshops that was held on the sidelines of this program, Sanai and Kian Farsad, another Iranian participant of this course, were encouraged many times by the attendees and organizers for their diligent activities in promoting this sport in Iran. Kian Farsad, the head coach of the youth national team the IIHF U18 Asia and Oceania Championship in Mongolia, was not present at the final ceremony, but he managed to receive a certificate. Passing such courses will definitely have a great impact on the scientific and fundamental development of ice hockey in Iran, and its effects will definitely be seen in the coming years and in various continental and global competitions
.
More Information:
Mongolia… Land of the Eternal Blue Sky
2023 IIHF ICE HOCKEY U18 ASIA AND OCEANIA CHAMPIONSHIP
The International Ice Hockey Federation and the Mongolian Ice Hockey Federation organized the “Ice Hockey U18 Asia and Oceania Championship” from March 11 to 17 in Ulaanbaatar at the Steppe Arena. Six teams from Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Iran, and Thailand took part in this tournament.
The Uzbekistani team won the gold medal with five wins, the Turkmenistan team took second place with four wins and one loss, and the Mongolian team took third place with three wins and two losses. UAE came fourth with six points ahead of Thailand, whose only victory was against Iran. The inexperienced Iranians found this tournament tough, scoring just four goals as they lost all five games.
Mongolia welcomes the world
The tournament was also a big deal for Mongolia, which was hosting an IIHF event for the first time. The newly built Steppe Arena in Ulaanbaatar can hold 2,600 spectators and is the first indoor hockey arena in Mongolia’s history. The IIHF World Championship Division IV held in Mongolia from March 23rd to 26th with participants from Indonesia, Kuwait, Mongolia, Philippines.
Iran was defeated against host country Mongolia 5-0 in its opening match of the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U-18 Asia and Oceania Championship.
The target of the young players of Iran, who entered these tournaments without any international experience, is to gain valuable experience and have a stronger presence in the next tournaments.
Eilya HAMZEH, Team Iran Best Player of the Game
Tournament Champion, Uzbekistan defeated Iran 14-1 in the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Asia and Oceania Championship.
In this game, Iran lost its experienced captain and best player, Arshia Ghafouri, due to a severe injury. An injury that caused Arshia to say goodbye to the tournament.
Soheil KHALAJ, Team Iran Best Player of the Game
Iran lost to the Thailand 8-0 in the 3rd game of the tournament.
The team Iran, which had lost many injured players so far in the tournament, could not get a good result against Thailand.
Abolfazl ESLAMI, Team Iran Best Player of the Game
Iran lost to the UAE 7-2 in the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Asia and Oceania Championship.
In this match, the Iranian youth could not resist against the UAE, which used several capable bi national players.
KHALAJ, Team Iran Best Player of the Game
In its last match, the team Iran could not get a favorable result against the powerful team of its northern neighbor, Turkmenistan, and lost to the runner-up of the tournament with a result of 14:1.
Mahbod ABDOLLAHI, Team Iran Best Player of the Game
Iranian Young Leopards
David MINARIK in Tehran
David Minarik, one of the leading coaches in the world, is a guest of Iran Mall's icebox from April 3rd to 7th. This outstanding trainer from the Slovak Republic is very experienced and has already implemented very successful training projects around the world.
Iran's national teams including women's and men's teams will have an intensive and valuable course under the supervision of this young coach. The presence of well-known coaches like David Minarik can be a big step in the development of ice hockey in Iran. Some of the David’s coaching experiences are as below:
- Coach of individual skills and Marketing manager (Jockers Ice Hockey Academy)
- Head Coach U16 (Vienna Capitals 2001)
- U16 Head Coach (Dunaujaros Acelbikak)
- Head of development program (Hungary Talent Academy)
- U16 Head Coach (Karpáti Farkasok)
David’s training camp in Tehran will focus on Individual Skills Development, Skating Development, and Game Situation Skills.