Brief history of winter sports-ice hockey

Ice hockey is a collective competitive sport in which ice skates and hockey sticks are used as tools to play against each other on the ice.

Ice hockey came into being later than football, hockey and speed skating. According to research, modern ice hockey originated in Canada. W.F. Robertson, a British student in Canada, was very good in skating. He moved the hockey he learned during his studies in the UK to play on the ice, and combined with the characteristics of “La Crosse” to create a new type sports on the ice-ice hockey in 1783.

History

The word “Hockey” is derived from the French “Hocquet”, the crutch used by shepherds. It has also been suggested that ice hockey is a batting game originated from the North American Iroquois Indians.

As early as two or three hundred years ago, there were different forms of ice hockey games in the world, such as “Kolfing” in the Netherlands, “Hinney” in North America, Russian ice hockey in Russia, and “Bandy” in Northern Europe. And China’s Cuju on ice and so on. Because of the differences in the social systems, economic foundations, national characteristics, and people’s lifestyles of these countries at that time, these early ice hockey games also had their own different characteristics.

Modern ice hockey originated in Canada. According to data, as early as 1855, whenever winter came, some sports enthusiasts in Kingston, Canada often gathered on the frozen lake, holding hockey sticks and feet, chasing each other and hitting balls made of wood chips and other objects. The early ice hockey games in Canada did not have uniform rules, and the games lacked strict organization. There is no limit to the number of people participating in the competition. At most, there are 30 people in each team. The scene is very chaotic. Referees can be selected by athletes and can be replaced at will.

Women’s ice hockey began in the 1860s.

On March 3, 1875, under the initiative of an ice hockey enthusiast named Crei Ghtonb, the world’s first official ice hockey game was held at the Victoria Ice Rink in Montreal.

In 1879, Professor Robertson and Professor Smith of McGill University in Montreal jointly formulated a formal game rule, limiting the number of players to each team to 9 people.

In 1885, some ice hockey enthusiasts in Montreal spontaneously organized the “Canadian Amateur Hockey Association”, and the number of participants was changed from 9 to 7 for each team, and finally to 6. At the same time, Kingston and Ontario’s first amateur ice hockey team was also announced.

In the 1890s, ice hockey swept Canada, and ice hockey groups and clubs sprung up all the way to the west coast.

In 1892, to reward the winners of the ice hockey game, Lord Stanley purchased a silver cup for $48.67. It was this silver cup that later became the highest prize for the North American National Hockey League (NHL). In the same year, the first official women’s ice hockey game was held in Barrie, north of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

In 1893, the champion of the first “Stanley Cup” was won by the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association club team.

In 1894, when the Montreal “3A” team competed with the Ottawa Provincial Team for this cup, it attracted more than 5,000 spectators. The stadium was full of voices and the scene was spectacular. In the same year, Canadian ice hockey players went to the United States for the first organized performance.

In 1895, there were more than 100 ice hockey clubs in Montreal alone. In the ranks of ice hockey there are not only students, citizens and businessmen, but also soldiers and government officials.

In 1896, the first ice hockey organization in the United States was founded in New York.

In 1902, Europe’s first ice hockey club was born in LesAvants, Switzerland. Le Sawang also won the right to host the first European Ice Hockey Championship in 1910. Soon, ice hockey clubs in France, England, Germany, Belgium and the Czech Republic were also established.

May 15-16, 1908, 7 ice hockey representatives from 4 countries, Planque and Van Der Ho-even in France, De Clarcq and De Malaret in Belgium , Switzerland’s Mellor and Dufour, Britain’s Mavrogrodato were invited by French journalist Louis Magnus to gather in Paris to discuss the development of ice hockey. At this meeting, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) was established.

In 1909, the Second International Hockey Federation Congress was held in Chamonix, France. The conference unified the rules and decided to hold the European Ice Hockey Championship once a year starting in 1910.

On January 10-12, 1910, the first European Ice Hockey Championship was held in Les Vaughan, Switzerland. Britain, Germany, Belgium and Switzerland participated in the competition. Driven by this competition, ice hockey has rapidly emerged in Europe.

In 1916, the first international women’s ice hockey game was held in Cleveland, northern Ohio, with the participation of the United States and Canada.

In 1920, ice hockey was included in the 7th Olympic Games as an official event, which greatly promoted the development of world ice hockey; from April 20-30 of the same year, ice hockey players from 7 countries including Canada, the United States, Sweden, Czechoslovakia, Switzerland, Belgium and France participated in the seventh Olympic ice hockey competition held in Antwerp, Belgium. At that time, European ice hockey, which was developed on the basis of “Bandy”, was quite different from that of North America in terms of play. As a result, they both lost to the Canadian and American teams by a wide margin. This game was later regarded as the first World Ice Hockey Championship.

In 1924, the first Winter Olympics was held in Chamonix, France. The Canadian team once again defeated all European teams by absolute advantage and won the first gold medal in the Winter Olympics ice hockey competition.

From 1924 to 1952, almost all the gold medals in the Winter Olympics and World Championships were won by the Canadian team.

In the mid-1950s, with the rise of Europe’s fast, flexible style of ice hockey, the comparison of ice hockey power between Europe and the United States was changed. From 1956 to 1998, almost all the gold medals in ice hockey games at the Winter Olympics were won by European teams. It was not until 2002 that the Canadian team regained the gold medal after losing 50 years of the Winter Olympics.

Since the 1960s, with the rise of international women’s football and women’s marathons, women’s ice hockey has gradually gained popularity. First, Sweden and Finland, then Japan, Norway, China, North Korea, Germany, Switzerland and France.

In 1987, the International Women’s Ice Hockey Invitational held by the Ontario Women’s Ice Hockey Association of Canada was of decisive significance for the development of world women’s ice hockey. The Federation submitted a report on the request to host the World Women’s Ice Hockey Championship. In view of the development of women’s ice hockey and the requirements of various countries, in 1988, the International Ice Hockey Federation decided to hold the World Women’s Ice Hockey Championship regularly starting in 1990, once every two years (once a year from 1999).

In 1993, with the development of women’s ice hockey, it was approved by the International Olympic Committee meeting that it was decided to start women’s ice hockey as a Winter Olympic event in 1998.

From the establishment of the International Ice Hockey Federation in 1908 to 2002, ice hockey has developed into more than 70 countries and regions on the five continents of the world, of which 64 countries and regions have joined the International Ice Hockey Federation.

Important events

The types of ice hockey competitions include: championships, leagues, invitational matches, friendly matches, trials, exhibition matches, etc.

Worldwide competitions are: World and European Ice Hockey Championships, held once a year, divided into groups A, B, and C. The World Youth Championships are divided into groups A, B and C. The European Youth Championships are divided into groups A, B and C. In addition, there is also a World Women’s Ice Hockey Championship held every two years.

1. Stanley Cup Ice Hockey Game

The Stanley Cup Ice Hockey Game is one of the world’s professional ice hockey games. It was founded in Montreal, Canada in 1893. The Stanley Cup was named after Frederick Stanley. It was set up to commemorate his contribution to ice hockey. It is the highest award by International Ice Hockey League.

The Stanley Cup is the oldest championship trophy in professional sports. The earliest ice hockey games were amateur games, and the original Stanley Cup was only awarded to the champions of the best amateur teams. The earliest professional league appeared in the United States in 1904, and the team that won the championship could get the Stanley Cup. The Stanley Cup is currently held once a year.

2. Winter Olympics ice hockey competition

Ice hockey is the event of the Winter Olympic Games, in which ice hockey games are divided into men’s ice hockey games and women’s ice hockey games.