India to compete in Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania Championship

New Delhi [India], April 12 : Ice Hockey Association of India has unveiled a new jersey for the Women's Team. The Indian women's Ice Hockey team will participate in the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Ocea Championship from April 30 to May 7.

The 20-member Indian Ice Hockey squad includes five debutants, who will be coached by Canadian Darrin Harrold with Tsewang Gyaltson and Amit Belwal assisting him. Tsewang Chuskit will captain the squad while Noor Jahan, a conservationist by training, is in charge of the goal.

The unveiling of the team jersey was followed by a panel discussion on the growth of Ice Hockey across the Himalayas, the development of winter sports and winter tourism.

The 20 players of the Indian national team, hailing from Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh, had the opportunity to connect and converse with key members of the Indian sporting ecosystem over the course of the evening.

A release said that Royal Enfield is currently working with all stakeholders to grow Ice Hockey, winter sports and winter tourism across the Himalayas. The objective is to build an eco-system for Ice Hockey that will eventually enable Indian players to compete at the highest levels of the sport, including the Winter Olympics.

"The Himalayas is our spiritual home and our partnership with the Indian Women's Ice Hockey team, is part of our social ambition to work together with 100 Himalayan communities to build resilience and support their ecosystem. Royal Enfield has been commissioned by UT Ladakh to develop a blueprint for Ice Hockey, towards achieving the ambition of Team India competing in the Winter Olympics," said Bidisha Dey, Executive Director, Eicher Group Foundation, the CSR arm of Royal Enfield.

"Alongside, we have been supporting the training of coaches and players, both at the grassroots level as well as at advanced levels and with necessary equipment and infrastructure. Tonight, we are proud to host these incredible women and wish them all the best as they head off to the icy battles that lie ahead of them in the Championship," Dey added.

The 18 women from the Union Territory of Ladakh and two from the state of Himachal Pradesh are at the spearhead of a sport that has grown in popularity over the past decade in these mountainous regions. Owing to the natural formation of ice through the winter months, the sport of Ice Hockey has steadily gained popularity and is passionately played, not only as winter entertainment but also as a serious sport.

"It's truly a proud moment for all of us at the Ice Hockey Association of India as our girls prepare to compete at yet another major global championship. Our goal is to ensure that more people across the country see ice hockey as the serious competitive sport it is and not just a winter recreational game," said Harjinder Singh Jindi, General Secretary, Ice Hockey Association of India.

In 2023, 18 Asian countries will be represented in the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship programme at different levels. These include Kazakhstan, Korea, Japan, China, the United Arab Emirates, DPR Korea, Turkmenistan, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Hong Kong (China), Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Singapore, Malaysia, Kuwait, the Philippines, Mongolia and Indonesia.

The IIHF Asia and Ocea Championship (formerly IIHF Challenge Cup of Asia) gives Asian and Ocea members that are not yet part of the World Championship Programme the chance to compete and gain valuable game experience. It is also an important platform leading to the Asian Winter Games.