Ice hockey history: Austria's women celebrate historical World Cup climbing!

Ice hockey history: Austria's women celebrate historical World Cup climbing!

Austria's women's ice hockey has reached a historic milestone: the Austrian national team has qualified for the A World Cup of the best ten ice hockey nations. This sensational success was celebrated on Thursday at the tournament of Division 1a in Shenzhen, where the ÖEHV selection defeated the Netherlands 3-2 after extra time. The team not only secured the climb, but also remains without defeat in the entire World Cup.

The game against the Netherlands started anything but promising for Austria. Already in the 13th minute they had to accept the first goal of the Dutch, and a rod shot from Theresa Schaf number prevented an earlier compensation. In the middle third, the supposedly decisive 0: 2 for the Netherlands fell shortly after half -time in the 26th minute. But thanks to a time-out and some line changes, the Austrians reach turning points. The 16-year-old Emma Lintner scored the connection goal in the 34th minute, followed by Annika Fazokas, who contributed 2-2 in the last third. In overtime, Fazokas crowned their performance with the decisive goal to 3: 2 in the 64th minute.

The further path

On Saturday, the last tournament game against France is pending for the Austrian team. After the strong appearance against the Netherlands, the team is optimistic to be able to win this game and to carry the positive atmosphere into the domestic ice hockey.

Another important step for women's ice hockey in Austria is imminent because the country has been awarded the contract for the organization of the Women's B World Cup 2024. Possible venues are Klagenfurt or Linz. China would actually have been planned as a host, but with their promotion a new organizer had to be found. This marks the third women's World Cup, which will be held in Austria after 2009 and 2017.

The challenges

Martin Kogler, General Manager of Women's Ice Hockey in ÖEHV, speaks to the challenges associated with the home World Cup. "The goal is at least 1,500 to 2,000 spectators per game," said Kogler. The event budget is around 500,000 euros and requires the support of around 120 employees and volunteers, including 15 experts from all over Austria. Corona pandemic has negatively influenced young ice hockey, which requires a joint effort of the association and clubs to advance women's ice hockey.

Kogler emphasizes the importance of media attention for the external presentation of women ice hockey and sees projects such as the ice hockey offspring Center East (Enzo) as decisive for the integration of everyone involved. The ÖEHV strives for every club of the Win2day Ice Hockey League also have a women's association to promote the visibility and development of sport. The European Women’s Hockey League (EWHL) is considered one of the top 3 leagues of the continent, while the newly founded Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) in North America has no direct influence on the European field

The development of women's ice hockey is optimistic by Kogler: "It is a matter of time and patience," he said, stating that progress, like in women's football in other countries, will soon be noticeable. This positive tendency is of great importance for the future of sport in Austria.

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