The World Ice Hockey Federation IIHF has postponed the women's Olympic qualifying tournaments for Beijing 2022 for the second time as a result of the effects of the corona pandemic. After the competitions for the last tickets for the upcoming Winter Games in June had already been postponed from February 2021 to the end of August 2021, a further postponement to November 2021 was now necessary, which the world association decided on Wednesday.
What was pleasing for the Deutscher Eishockey-Bund was that the IIHF is sticking to the World Cup tournaments in the top division: the Women's World Championship and the U18 Men's World Championship (both April 2021) remain part of the calendar, as do the two top divisions. Men's and U20 Men's World Cup tournaments. “This is very good news for our German athletes. “You can use it to prepare specifically for the highlights of the season, which makes me very happy,” said DEB-President Franz Reindl after the IIHF Council meeting. All World Cup tournaments below the top division had to be canceled by the world association due to corona.
The team of women's national coach Christian Künast will host a tournament in Füssen against Norway, Austria and a third opponent to be determined and try to qualify for the Olympics. If the women's national team qualifies, that would be DEB represented with both teams at the Olympics for the first time since Turin 2006. National coach Toni Söderholm's men's national team had already secured Olympic qualification by participating in the quarter-finals at the 2019 World Cup in Slovakia.
The DEBThe selection has not yet played an international match this season - due to the complicated situation. However, various training courses run by the Bundeswehr sports promotion group and a perspective team and a training course for the entire squad of the women's national team were possible. The highlight of the season for the Künast team is the IIHF Women's World Championship in Halifax and Truro/Canada from April 7 to 21, 2021. Germany will face Japan, the Czech Republic, Denmark and Hungary in Group B in Truro.
Women’s national coach Christian Künast: “There is some relief now that we have a final date for the qualifying tournament and hopefully it will take place. So far it hasn't been an easy task to keep the team's motivation and concentration high without any international matches, but we've mastered it quite well. We will now prepare for the new date and then work diligently towards it – as we always do.”
Photo: Pencz