More than medals: A tournament that sparked a movement

Kelsey DiClaudio still remembers the sound. What began as a murmur from Colonnade Bridge over the river near the team hotel soon swelled into a wall of cheers as hundreds waved flags and lined the path for the inaugural Women’s World Para Ice Hockey Championships. She didn’t expect to tear up before ever touching the ice, but the emotion swept through her all the same.

For Team USA’s veteran forward DiClaudio, the tournament became about more than MVP trophies and gold medals. It sparked a surge of momentum that has reshaped the sport in the three months since, giving women’s Para ice hockey unprecedented visibility and drawing in a wave of new young athletes.

“The atmosphere was incredible. There’s always skepticism about how receptive a community will be to Para ice hockey, let alone women’s Para ice hockey,” she said. “But the community in Dolny Kubin really showed up.”

By the time the final buzzer sounded on the gold medal match, the stands in Winter Stadium were packed. DiClaudio didn’t grasp the magnitude until rewatching the game later. “You see the crowd fill more and more. It went from full seats to standing room only,” she said. 

A championship run

Team USA dominated the tournament, outscoring opponents 27–1 across three matches. Every skater except the goalkeepers registered at least one point, and DiClaudio scored or assisted on 15, including four goals in the gold medal match.

She credits both her teammates and the women who paved the way for the programme’s first world title. “I’m inspired by each woman in the locker room, and every woman who came before us that didn’t get an opportunity to play in these world challenges or the Championship,” she said.

Her linemates played a central role. “My linemates, especially Erica McKee, who has been with the program since 2007 and I since 2011, have so much chemistry together,” she said. “And to play with one of our up-and-coming talents, Caden Herchenroether… to see her grow has been awesome. And I can’t forget my defensive pairing, Catherine Faherty and Madison Eberhard. It was their first tournament playing defense together, and they did incredible holding that line for us.”

Her bond with Faherty showed in the medal ceremony, when the two swapped medals. “To play this sport alongside your best friend is special,” she said. “We had ended up next to each other during the ceremony, and I had seen Olympians and Paralympians swap medals before. It was the perfect opportunity for us to recreate that.”

That 𝓰𝓸𝓵𝓭𝓮𝓷 feeling 🤩 pic.twitter.com/Wf2feyrY3S

— USA Hockey (@usahockey) August 31, 2025

A sport changed overnight

The impact didn’t stay in Slovakia. In the months that followed, DiClaudio has watched the sport transform.

“I was just in Canada, and the number of little girls at tournaments is incredible,” she said. 

“Growing up, I didn’t see that many women playing. Now it’s everywhere.”

The USA Hockey NHL Sled Classic in Long Island from December 4-7 will feature more than 50 girls and women of all ages and skill levels, including youth players, adults and military veterans. To DiClaudio, that turnout signals a movement, not a moment.

Online visibility has surged as well. During the Championship and the weeks after, highlights circulated daily on platforms such as Bleacher Report and Togethxr. According to World Para Ice Hockey, viewership increased 98 per cent from last year’s Women’s World Challenge and 275 percent from the 2022 event in Green Bay.

“I used to tell people I played Para ice hockey, but I could never show them good footage,” she said. “To finally have that and see it shared everywhere feels refreshing.”

Imagen

Life after MVP

 
Since the Championship, DiClaudio has been competing with her club team, the Pittsburgh Mighty Penguins, working on her speed and spending time with her cat, Maxwell.

“One of the first things I did when I got home was put my medal around Maxwell’s neck,” she said.

Aside from her duties as a self-proclaimed cat mom, DiClaudio said the MVP title has brought heightened expectations. “There’s more eyes and pressure on everyone, but also newfound motivation,” she said. “For me, it’s important to be an involved athlete and to give back to the community that named me one of the best players in the world. I want to be someone people can come up to and ask questions about hockey and life. I want little girls to see a picture of the player they could be in me.”

Interactions with young fans have become some of the most meaningful. “Hearing the whispers when my teammates and I show up, and little girls wanting pictures…it’s super special,” she said.

POV: you’re the first ever #ParaIceHockey Women’s World Champion 🥹#DolnyKubin2025 pic.twitter.com/0BgbeKVsss

— Para Ice Hockey (@paraicehockey) September 1, 2025

Looking ahead

Even with the momentum from the World Championship, she said the movement still has ground to cover.

“We’re a lot closer than we thought when it comes to making it to the Paralympics. However, we still have so much work to do,” she said. “We don’t have enough teams yet to make our bid.”

That’s why the upcoming Winter Games in Milano Cortina hold extra meaning. “I think the upcoming Paralympics is a great way to keep women’s Para ice hockey relevant,” she said. “It’s important that people know about us and understand we’re fighting for our spot in the Games too. We do this by keeping ourselves in the conversation during the Games, on social media, through word of mouth and introducing new people to the sport.”

For DiClaudio, that push is personal. “You will 100 per cent see me at the 2030 Paralympics,” she said. “There is not a single part of me that is giving up on this Paralympic dream. As long as my body and my mind allow it, I plan to be there.”

Team USA’s next competitive stretch begins in March, as the new season ramps up. For now, DiClaudio is focused on helping build the future she once only dreamed of.

“The possibility of becoming a world champion gives future athletes something to look forward to,” she said. “My message to them is to have fun and to keep striving for it.”