Hockey fans watching the finals of the 2008 World Championships were treated to a thrilling finale, as Russia defeated hosts Canada 5-4 in overtime. These championships which marked the 100th anniversary of the IIHF were celebrated in style as the Canadians and Russians resumed a rivalry which has seen some of the all time classic matches, including the 1972 Summit Series and 1987 Canada Cup.
Ilya Kovalchuk’s overtime goal gave the Russian team a 5-4 victory after battling back from a 4-2 deficit in the second period. For the Russians, the victory is a huge relief after the disappointment of losing in the semifinals on home ice in last year’s tournament. The win is also a huge lift to a nation which has struggled in international play in recent years. This is only Russia’s second World Championship following the break up of the Soviet Union and its first since 1993.
With the monkey off their backs, now the focus for the Russians turns to Vancouver 2010. Olympic play has also been frustrating for the Russians, who have not been able to win the competition since NHL players were permitted to play in 1998. Though they picked up a silver medal in 1998 and a bronze in 2002, talent like Kovalchuk, Alexander Ovechkin, and Evgeni Nabokov makes them one of the clear favorites. Add in Pavel Daysuk and Evgeni Malkin, who were still in the NHL Playoffs and unable to compete at the World’s, and anything less than gold in Vancouver would be see as a failure.
For Canada, the loss continues the home ice curse which has seen the host fail to lift the trophy every year since 1986. But the disappointment of missing out on a 25th World Championship will be offset a little by the knowledge that they have hosted one of the most successful tournaments in recent years. Though the total attendance of 477,040 missed the all time tournament record of 552,097, the average match attendance of 8,834 was a huge increase from a year ago, when Moscow and Mytishci, Russia saw only 5,906 per game.
This year’s tournament was the first World Championships to be held in Canada, and the success of the event led IIHF President Rene Fassel to state that he hopes it will return to North America in the future. However, the next five World Championships will be held in European countries, meaning that Canada will have to wait at least until 2014 for the opportunity to host the tournament again.
In other news, while the Canadians and Russians were the best on the ice at year’s tournament, they also dominated the IIHF’s All-Century team, with Wayne Gretzky being joined by the four former ‘Red Army’ stars Vyacheslav Fetisov, Valeri Kharlamov, Sergei Makarov, and Vladislav Tretiak. Sweden’s Borje Salming rounded out the team which was selected by a panel of 56 writers from 16 countries.
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The following is by the newest member of the Business of Sports Network, Peter Morrison. Peter is a former correspondent for ESPN Soccernet, writing about the Czech National Team and has also written for Eurohockey.net. Please welcome Peter. -- Maury Brown, Founder and President, Business of Sports Network
Despite winning the World Ice Hockey Championships more then any other country in history, Canada had never served as host of the annual event until this year. Of course, one of the major reasons the 24 time champions have never hosted the tournament is the relatively low profile the event carries. Since it clashes with the Stanley Cup playoffs, the majority of star players are still with their NHL clubs and therefore unable to represent their home countries.
The lack of stars in the World Championships has relegated the tournament to an event largely ignored in North America and has meant that it is largely contested by players from European based clubs, leading some to refer to the tournament as “The European Championships.â€
Though the Canadians have won the event more than any other nation, the majority of these victories came in the first half of the 20th century, and from 1962 until the turn of the century, they lifted the trophy only two times, in 1994 and 1997.
However, the Canadians have seen better luck in recent times winning the event 3 out of he last five years. But despite this success, the tournament has remained a European based event, rotated between the major powers on that continent. While even minor hockey playing nations such as Latvia, Norway, and Austria have held the World Championships, Canada had never hosted, while the USA has not held the tournament since 1962.
However, with 2008 marking the centennial year of the founding of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), the governing body decided to award this year’s tournament to the founding nation of the game, meaning a very different feel to this year’s event including the smaller playing surface of North America, but also and more importantly bigger crowds.
If there was any thoughts that the Canadian fans would stay away from this event in favor of the stars in the Stanley Cup playoffs, those fears were quickly put to rest during the tournament’s first round. Through the first 12 games, average attendance has been 8, 573 at matches held at the Colisee Pepsi in Quebec City and the Metro Centre in Halifax.
The huge crowds have led to talk of breaking the record number of spectators for this event, set in 2004 when the Czech Republic was host. Canada already holds record attendance marks for the World Junior Championships and the World Women’s Championship.
Though surpassing the record mark of 552,097 spectators for 56 games would mean the 15,399 capacity Colisee Pepsi and 10,595 seat Metro Centre would need to see a big increase in ticket sales, the large crowds are a welcome addition to the relatively small attendances typically seen in European host cities.
To compare, the first round of last year’s tournament in Moscow and Mytishchi, Russia saw only two games with an attendance which surpassed the 8,573 average seen in Canada. Both of these games featured the host nation, while the third opening round match for Russia against the Ukraine attracted only 6,620 spectators. Even the lowest attended match in Canada so far; a game between minnows Italy and Denmark was watched by 6,838 fans. Similar games between minor nations saw approximately 2,000- 4,000 spectators attend during the 2007 Russia tournament, with a low of 1,900 for a match between Austria and the USA.
While the increase in spectators has been a pleasant surprise, it does not appear that this will mean more World Championships for North America in the near future. The 2009 event will be held in Switzerland, with Germany, Slovakia, Finland, and Sweden hosting in the following years.
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My hometown of Quebec City (QC, Canada), after some doubts about whether the personnel in place could handle the organization of the event, will host the 2008 IIHF World Men's Hockey Championship from May 2nd to May 18th, 2008. The town Halifax (Nova Scotia, Canada) will host 26 round-robin games of its own.
This 16-team event will be held outside of Europe for the first time since 1962 and will also mark the 100th anniversary of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), which wanted to celebrate this occasion by playing in the country where organized ice hockey was born.
The tournament will also serve as the qualifying round for the men's hockey competition at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games to be presented in Vancouver (British Columbia, BC). The top nine teams will be qualified for the international event.
The economic impact on the region, where thousands of hotel rooms have already been booked, is supposed to be as high as 84 M$ and if the event is a success, the IIHF could be tempted to hold the event in North America on a more regular basis.
To show the importance of such events and their positive financial impact on a community, here's the press release by the Canadian Sports Tourism Alliance following the 2006 World Junior Championships held in Kelowna, Kamloops and Vancouver (all from British Columbia, Canada):
The event generated an estimated economic activity of $41.0 million in the province of British Columbia. These totals resulted from $22.8 million in combined operations, capital and visitors spending. The event contributed over $21.7 million to the provincial GDP. A total of $8.1 million in wages and salaries were paid in the province, supporting 275 jobs. The total level of taxes received by all levels of governments as a result of the event was estimated to be approximately $4.6 million, distributed as follows:
$2.0 million accrued to the federal government
$2.0 million to the Province of British Columbia
$564,000 to municipal governments.
The event involved 316 participants from 10 countries, nearly 500 media, and attracted a combined total of approximately 26,000 out of town spectators and VIPs to the three host cities.
The 2006 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship clearly show how attracting major sport events to B.C. can pay off in spades – both for the host communities and the whole province," said Tourism, Sport and the Arts Minister Olga Ilich.
The international competitions also help at the amateur level, with USA Hockey announcing in 2005 that they had made a profit after hosting the event in Grand Forks (North Dakota), the first time in four years. From ESPN:
"This one's a whole different level financially compared to the other ones we've hosted," said Jim Johannson, senior director of hockey operations for USA Hockey, which also hosted the world championship in 1982 (Minneapolis), 1989 (Anchorage, Alaska) and 1996 (Boston).
When the event was held in Nova Scotia in 2003, it generated a record $3.7 million for hockey programs in Canada, where the sport is more popular. Officials south of the border are trying to raise awareness of the sport, and say national media coverage on ESPN of this year's tournament should help raise its profile.
The $800,000 guarantee to USA hockey, along with any other profits, will go toward amateur hockey programs, including the North Dakota Amateur Hockey Association and Minnesota Hockey.
USA Hockey is getting 80 percent of the profits from ticket sales, merchandise, sponsorships and television rights, said Chris Semrau, a spokesman for Ralph Engelstad Arena.
For an organization like USA Hockey, such cash infusions are very important to help showcase the game at the amateur level, especially at a time when only 4% of adults following more than one sport considered hockey their favorite, according to a Harris poll in January 2007.
Dave Rouleau is a staff member of the Business of Sports Network
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