Living diversity in ice hockey

Ice hockey connects – integration & diversity in the fastest team sport in the world

The Deutscher Eishockey-Bund (DEB) initiated the “Integration in Ice Hockey” project together with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) in December 2016. Almost two years have passed since then and the interim report shows numerous clubs that have participated in information events and... Integration Days actively engaged with the topic.

To ensure that integration in ice hockey can continue to be actively and successfully pursued, the DEB the club representatives, coaches and players in the future too. That's how they became Integration Days before the 2017/18 season, in which children and young people with a migrant background or from socially disadvantaged backgrounds are enthusiastic about the sport of ice hockey as part of a “trial training”. The DEB supports the clubs with implementation guidelines, as well as digital advertising materials, multilingual flyers and posters. For the preparation, implementation and follow-up of the Integration Days is the DEB-Project supervisor Julia Eisenrieder supports the clubs.

“Ice hockey is about team spirit, determination and passion. It doesn’t matter where you come from, what language you speak or what religion you belong to, as long as you stand on the ice with energy and heart,” explains the 28-year-old. “As part of the Integration in Ice Hockey project, we support our members in their integrative work in the clubs and are increasingly reaching out to children with a migrant background.” Eisenrieder has been overseeing the project since it was launched. To this end, she works closely with clubs such as EHC Straubing, 1.EV Weiden and the Red Devils Bad Nauheim. “These are the clubs that have been more committed so far,” explains the project manager. “The EHC Nuremberg also held its first “Learn to Play” event last week, where they approached children with a migrant background in advance. Of course we hope that many more clubs will join in the future.”

In the trainer training of the DEB Integration is playing an increasingly important role. Karl Schwarzenbrunner, national trainer for science and training at DEB, has firmly anchored the topic in the A, B and C trainer modules. Starting with an initial seminar on intercultural learning in sport, the importance of the topic and the interest of the trainers have developed to such an extent that future events will become increasingly comprehensive in terms of topic and will train up to 30 participants. This happened in June 2018, when the B trainers attended their own module on the topic of "Intercultural Sensitization". Furthermore, all A, B and C trainers were offered the intensive seminar "Fit for Diversity" as part of their training. This two-day training course will take place in September 2018 and will focus on topics such as interculturality and anti-discrimination. The intensive seminar has been sold out for weeks.

“Integration does not work on its own and sport is not inherently integrative. It is a process that requires a lot of expertise and commitment in order to be able to initiate and implement proactive measures,” explains Karl Schwarzenbrunner. “We don’t take integration for granted, but rather want to raise awareness of the topic among trainers during seminars and give them tips for their daily work.”

The German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) also offers funding opportunities for clubs. As part of the federal program “Integration through Sport”, which has been supported by the Federal Ministry of the Interior for many years, the clubs are advised and supported by the 16 program managers in the state sports associations and youth. The DOSB also offers clubs intercultural qualifications and supports integrative measures through financial support. The DEB is in close contact with the DOSB and both institutions cooperate in the implementation of their own events to provide clubs, players and Fans to bring the topic of “integration” closer.

For questions from clubs and their club representatives on the topic of integration and the implementation of Integration Days you can contact the DEB-Project supervisor Julia Eisenrieder (Mail: julia.eisenrieder@deb-online.de) turn around. A contact person from the respective state sports association will be happy to assist you with the federal program “Integration through Sport”. You can find this at: https://integration.dosb.de/inhalte/service/laender/.

Franz Reindl, DEB-President: “There is a lot of potential for the integration of children and young people with a migrant background. We see this in numerous clubs that help children and young people get on the ice. You will be specifically assisted in the organization and implementation of Integration Days by the DEB supports. We sensitize our trainers to the topic of integration in special seminars. We will intensify this work in the future and continue to expand our activities.”