Korea to Host 2013 Ice Sledge Hockey Worlds

It will be the last major gathering of the best Ice Sledge Hockey teams ahead of the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games.

Goyang City, Korea will play host to the 2013 International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Ice Sledge Hockey A Pool World Championships, the IPC announced on Tuesday (15 May), the first time an Asian country will stage the event.

Organized by the Korea Ice Hockey Association for the Disabled, the world’s top eight teams will gather at the Goyang SPART Complex and Park from 12-20 April, 2013.

It will be the seventh World Championships to take place since they began in Nynashamn, Sweden in 1996, and it will be the last major gathering of the best Ice Sledge Hockey teams ahead of the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games.

Xavier Gonzalez, IPC Chief Executive Officer, said: “We are delighted to announce Korea as the host nation for the 2013 Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships.

“We anticipate a high level of competition at what will be the final major championships before the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games the following year. It will also give the Korean public a taster of what is to come in 2018 when Pyeongchang stages the Paralympic Winter Games."

Goyang City is located about 30 minutes away from Seoul – Korea’s capital and largest city – and is populated by nearly 900,000 people.

Sung-ho Hwang, Secretary General of the Korea Ice Hockey Association for the Disabled, said: “The Championships will help raise awareness of the Paralympic Movement in Korea and strengthen the performances of Korean players prior to the 2014 Sochi Paralympic Winter Games.

“Korean Ice Sledge Hockey achieved remarkable success at the last World Championships in Hamar, Norway. Now, hosting the event will also help a great deal in the long-term development of Korea’s Ice Sledge Hockey programme heading into the 2018 Pyeongchang Paralympic Winter Games.”

Keith Blase, Chairman of the IPC Ice Sledge Hockey Sport Technical Committee, said: “We are pleased and excited to be working with the Korean Paralympic Committee and the Korea Ice Hockey Association for the Disabled to bring the World Championships to Korea in 2013. This event will help us expand our sport within the Asian region of the world and also help in our preparation for the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games.”

The 2012 IPC Ice Sledge Hockey World Championships took place in April in Hamar, Norway.

Reigning Paralympic champions USA took gold, beating silver medallists Korea in the final. Canada took home the bronze.

Korea’s silver was the first medal of any colour for the country’s Ice Sledge Hockey programme on the international stage.