After the successful Olympic qualification of the women's national team, one thing is certain: For the first time since 2006, the women's and men's national ice hockey teams will represent Team Germany together again at the 2026 Olympic Games in Milan and Cortina. The anticipation is accordingly great in the Deutscher Eishockey-Bund (DEB) and among the athletes.
The scenes of jubilation from the German women's dressing room were shared countless times on Sunday evening, as the team of women's national coach Jeff MacLeod had fulfilled its big dream of the Olympics. For the first time since 2014, the DEBWomen are back at the Winter Games – their fourth participation after 2002, 2006 and 2014.
The men's national team had already secured its ticket to the Olympics in 2023. The decisive factor here was reaching the semifinals at the 2023 IIHF World Championship in Tampere and Riga and the associated world ranking. In the end, the team of national coach Harold Kreis even rewarded themselves with the World Championship silver medal and thus celebrated an outstanding success for German ice hockey.
Finally, both DEBThe teams ran onto the track together at the opening ceremony of the 2006 Winter Games and thus shared a very special experience during the two weeks in Turin. The Olympians from that time still remember the joint performance well.
Maritta Becker, 271-time national player and three-time Olympic participant, looks back: "It was already the case in 2002 in Salt Lake City that we had a close connection to one another during the tournament and acted like a team. We didn't really know each other before, but at the Olympics a big community immediately emerged. The mutual support was noticeable at all times. We either supported one another during the games or simply met in the cafeteria, for example, and talked together."
Four-time Olympic participant Christian Ehrhoff (118 international matches) can confirm this: "I can remember very well what it was like to compete with both ice hockey teams. We basically lived together in the Olympic Village, so we did a lot together and supported each other." Especially since both ice hockey tournaments were held at the same venues: "We were at the game, of course, and kept our fingers crossed in the hall," Ehrhoff continued, "but I thought it was a shame that we didn't appear together again at the Olympic tournaments afterwards."
Ehrhoff, one of the silver medalists in 2018 and German flag bearer at the closing ceremony in Pyeongchang, South Korea, was nominated for the Olympic Games for the second time in 2006. At that time, the DEBselection - like the current men's team - automatically qualifies for the tournament in Turin as one of the eighth best teams in the world. "This Olympic spirit is already incomparable for each individual. And when you can represent your sport with both teams, it makes it even more extraordinary. That's why I was so happy about the success of our women in Bremerhaven last Sunday."
Ehrhoff also emphasizes the outstanding external impact: "The Olympics is the biggest possible sporting stage, the whole world is watching and is therefore the flagship for our sport. The attention on our sport in these weeks is unbelievably great, of course also has an impact on Germany and certainly has an enormous number of positive effects in terms of promoting ice hockey."
Becker also confirms this: "The media interest among the men was already high back then, our women's ice hockey had a much lower profile than today. It was more of a regional issue. For us, the media interest at the Olympics was simply crazy because we weren't used to it. The marketing of women's ice hockey has now progressed so positively, which was confirmed by the live broadcast of the women's qualification on MagentaSport. That's why things will be very different for the team in 2026."
Like the women's team 20, Maritta Becker and her team also had to go through a previous qualifying tournament, as she still remembers clearly: "It was a great experience. An Olympic cycle like this lasts four years in total, during which you basically prepare and look forward to moments like these. The pressure during a qualifying round is enormous, because you know that you actually have to win all the games. We played in Bad Tölz back then and came through pretty confidently. I can still remember the lightness the day after when you've made it and are at the Olympics. So many weights are lifted from your shoulders."
In the final analysis, the men missed out on a place in the quarter-finals at the 2006 tournament, in which the NHL stars of all teams took part, while the women finished in a strong fifth place, thus achieving the best result for women at the Olympics to date. In the penalty shootout, they managed a 1:0 victory against the favored Russians. Maritta Becker scored the decisive goal: "We had a very strong goalkeeper in Jenny Harß in the squad, she was outstanding in this game. As captain, it was clear to me that I would have to play in the penalty shootouts. To be honest, it was clear to me before the start that I would do it. I had one or two things that I always did in penalty shootouts. I then decided on a movement and it worked."
The Canadians celebrated their success at the 2006 women's tournament, while Sweden won gold in the men's event. In addition to the sporting challenge of competing in such a tight tournament and finishing as well as possible, the shared experience of Germany taking part in the Olympics remains. This remains a special, personal highlight, even after their active careers. The two can now look back on this. DEBteams that will travel to Milan together in 2026.