Back to paralympic.org
World-Para-Ice-Hockey-header-logo

Jessheim 2025: Japan and Slovakia grab last two spots at Milano Cortina 2026

Spurred by Itsuki Ito, named as Best Forward, and Wataru Horie, the Best Goalkeeper, the Japanese side returns to the Paralympic stage after missing out on Beijing 2022; Slovakia, propelled by Most Valuable Player of the Tournament Martin Joppa, will play their second Paralympic tournament as the teams join USA, Canada, Czechia, China, Germany and Italy in Milano Cortina 2026. Korea misses out the Paralympics for the first time since 2006. 11 Nov 2025
Athletes celebrate in joy
Japan booked their berth at the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games after beating Norway 8-2 in their final game at the Qualification Tournament at Is- og Flerbrukshall in Jessheim, Norway.
ⒸJohan Gronlie / WPIH
By Stuart Lieberman I For World Para Ice Hockey

Japan and Slovakia have secured the last two spots at the 2026 Milano Cortina Paralympic Winter Games after finishing as the top two teams at the 2025 World Para Ice Hockey Paralympic Winter Games Qualification Tournament this week.

Both nations won four of their five games at the Qualification Tournament at the Is- og Flerbrukshall in Jessheim, Norway, and will now join USA, Canada, Czechia, China, Germany and Italy on the Paralympic stage next year.

Host nation Norway and Korea both finished the Qualification Tournament one win short of securing a spot with nine points apiece in the standings, while Sweden had three points and Kazakhstan failed to tally any points.

Slovakia’s Martin Joppa was named Most Valuable Player of the tournament, leading all scorers with 14 points (7 goals, 7 assists). 

Athletes celebrate in joy
Slovakia came out on top in a thriller against Korea 2-1, thanks to a score by Miroslav Stasak and a power-play goal by Martin Joppa.


“I’m speechless,” Joppa said, skating off the ice after Slovakia’s final win. “We came here for this, and we are so happy we did it. It was a thrill. We played as a team like we wanted to play the whole tournament. We played bad for one minute against Japan, which complicated our tournament, but otherwise played our best every game of the tournament.”

Japan’s Itsuki Ito was chosen the Best Forward and Norway’s Audun Bakke the Best Defenceman. Japan, in fact, had three of the six top point-getters in the tournament, as Shosei Ukai, Masaharu Kumagi and Ito combined for 15 goals and 15 assists between them.

Wataru Horie earned Best Goalkeeper honors for Japan with a top save percentage of 93.48, racking up 86 saves on the week and recording two shutouts. 

“This is the best day of my life and everyone’s best day of their lives in our team,” said Japan’s head coach Kojin Kakakita after his team qualified for Milano Cortina. “We couldn’t be happier.”

Here is a closer look at the results from the final two days of action in Jessheim. 

 

Day 3

Korea 7, Kazakhstan 0: Korea scored four goals in the first period — two from Si-Woo Choi and two from Seung-Hwan Jung — and never looked back. They went on to outshoot Kazakhstan 25-7 and remain in contention for a qualification spot behind a shutout from Dae-Han Bong.

Japan 3, Sweden 0: Behind two goals from Ito and a perfect game from Horie between the pipes, Japan earned a seamless victory to also remain in the hunt heading into the final day of action.

Slovakia 3, Norway 1: The host nation fell short in a must-win game for both teams, despite a tie game midway through. Joppa ultimately powered Slovakia to victory with two goals, including an insurance goal with less than two minutes remaining in the contest. 

 

Day 4

Sweden 4, Kazakhstan 3: Sweden notched three goals in the first period before fending off a late Kazakhstan surge to come out on top and secure their first win of the tournament on the final day. Hugo Liljebaek, named Best Player of the game, netted a hat trick for Sweden and had seven total shots on goal on the day.

Slovakia 2, Korea 1: In this high-stakes matchup with a Paralympic spot on the line, Slovakia came out on top in a thriller thanks to a score by Miroslav Stasak and a power-play goal by Joppa, in addition to key saves by Eduard Lepaceck in the net. Korea will now miss the Paralympics for the first time since 2006, while Slovakia will play in their second Paralympic tournament.

Japan 8, Norway 2: In another game with everything on the line, Japan came out surging with four goals in the first period to stomp on the host nation and return to the Paralympic stage after missing out on Beijing 2022. This will be the second Paralympics that Norway has missed out on.

The Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games will take place from 6-15 March 2026 featuring six sports. The Para ice hockey tournament will be played at the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena. 

Related Topics

Para Ice Hockey

Related Stories

View More