Great Britain ice hockey team secure home ice for 2023 IIHF World Championship promotion bid

GREAt BRITAIN ice hockey bosses believe the successful bid to host next year’s World Championships in Nottingham signifies a “huge” moment for the sport in this country.

Pete Russell’s team will take on Italy, Lithuania, Korea, Poland and Romania in the six-team group, with the tournament taking place at the Motorpoint Arena from April 29 to May 5.

The GB proposal to stage the Division I Group A tournament secured 54 per cent of the vote, beating a bid from Italy, securing the hosting rights for what will be the most prestigious ice hockey tournament ever held in the UK.

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It will be the second men’s tournament to take place in the UK within six years after the Division I, Group B tournament in Belfast in 2017, which saw GB promoted. The following year they secured a second successive promotion in Hungary, sealing a return to the ‘Pool A’ level of teams for the first time since 1994.

HOME ICE ADVANTAGE: Great Britain's men's team will host their World Championship Division 1A rivals in Nottingham at next year. Picture: Dean Woolley/IHUK.HOME ICE ADVANTAGE: Great Britain's men's team will host their World Championship Division 1A rivals in Nottingham at next year. Picture: Dean Woolley/IHUK.
HOME ICE ADVANTAGE: Great Britain's men's team will host their World Championship Division 1A rivals in Nottingham at next year. Picture: Dean Woolley/IHUK.

Russell’s team remained in the top tier for three successive years before suffering relegation last week in Tampere, Finland, following a 5-3 defeat to Group B rivals Austria in their final game.

But home ice advantage in the East Midlands next year should bring a significant advantage, with the top two teams promoted to play in the top-tier in Prague and Ostrava in Czechia, in 2024.

“This will further cement GB on the ice hockey world map by staging a tournament of this scale,” said IHUK General Secretary, Andy French. “It is great for the national team and huge for the sport of ice hockey in the UK.

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“The chance to bid for 1A came about very suddenly. Relegated teams are only allowed to bid to host if none of the other teams in the group put forward a proposal. We hosted a very successful 1B tournament in Belfast in 2017 and this is another level up from that.”

HOME ICE ADVANTAGE: Great Britain will host their World Championship Division 1A rivals in Nottingham next year. Picture: Dean Woolley/IHUK.HOME ICE ADVANTAGE: Great Britain will host their World Championship Division 1A rivals in Nottingham next year. Picture: Dean Woolley/IHUK.
HOME ICE ADVANTAGE: Great Britain will host their World Championship Division 1A rivals in Nottingham next year. Picture: Dean Woolley/IHUK.

Chair of IHUK, Clifton Wrottesley, added: “Being awarded a major IIHF tournament, particularly one that could have such important role in helping the process of continuing to develop the sport in the UK, shows how far we have come as an ice hockey nation recently, but it doesn’t stop here.

“We have ambitious plans involving international events over the next few years. It’s also an award that could have a crucial performance effect, in assisting the men’s team return to the IIHF World Championship Division.

“We have to do justice to the incredible performances of the men’s team over the past few years in the Championship Division and particularly their performances in Finland this year, where they took other top-flight nations close in three games, two of which we led for a good period of the games, all while missing key players.”

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