Everything you need to know about Ice Hockey in Kenya

When we consider the origins of ice hockey, Africa is probably the last place you would expect to find this sport alive and well. Aside from the obvious locations such as South Africa and Egypt, this sport is now gaining popularity in East Africa, specifically Kenya.

What is ice hockey?

Ice hockey is simply hockey played on ice skates, usually on an ice-skating rink with special lines and markings.

Each team has six skaters on the ice at any given time in a formal game, one of whom is a goalkeeper. It's probably one of the most difficult sports, but it sounds interesting, doesn't it?

When it started

Ice hockey was born in 2005 when the Panari Hotel made headlines as Kenya's first hotel with a real ice rink. This concept may have arisen as a result of different worlds colliding in Kenya; Americans, Canadians, and Scandinavians.

Kenyan players who are passionate, dedicated, and fearless have defied the odds and joined the sport since then.

Debut match

The Kenya Men's National Team (Lions) made its debut in 2019 when it took part in the Last Game All Stars to raise awareness of the effects of climate change in Kenya and around the world. They were defeated by Last Game All Stars.

The players compete against one another. They competed in a friendly tournament called the Howi Friendship League Tournament on January 7.

There are currently insufficient players to support a women's team, but that does not prevent the current players from playing.

Where the rink is located

The rink is in the Panari Hotel in Nairobi, Kenya, near a national park where visitors can see leopards, cheetahs, and rhinos.

Despite the region's beautiful flora and fauna, most hockey fans come to see the Ice Lions. They are East Africa's only ice hockey team. For example, Viacheslav Fetisov of the Hockey Hall of Fame flew to Kenya in March 2019 to play with the Kenyans as part of his project partnership with the United Nations to highlight climate change. The game marked Kenya's first international hockey match.

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Rick Lipsey, a parent-coach and North Park Hockey Team Manager, traveled to Nairobi with his two sons to skate with the Lions and present them with a cheque and bags full of hockey items donated by Pure Hockey, Howies Hockey Tape, and Renfrew Pro, a maker of hockey tape. More hockey stars, including Bernie Saunders and Kirika Mugo, came to the rink to play with the Kenyans.

The Solar Ice Rink can accommodate 200 skaters at any given time.

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Kenya’s run in Winter Olympics

Kenya has previously hosted Winter Olympics. Cross-Country Skier Philip Boit competed in 2002 and 2006, finishing 64th in the sprint race and 92nd in the 12-kilometer classic race, respectively, while Alpine Skier Sabrina Simader represented the country in Pyeongchang, South Korea, finishing 38th in the super-G.

On the flipside, Kenya is not a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation

Kenya is not a member of the IIHF at the moment. If she is accepted as a member, she will join Algeria, Morocco, and South Africa as the continent's only IIHF members. Egypt and Tunisia are also vying for admission to the 81-nation federation.

Lack of players

Kenya did not participate in last year's Winter Olympics, which were scheduled for February 4th-20th, 2022 in Beijing, China, citing a lack of athletes to represent the country.

Sabrina Simader (Alpine skiing), Dennis Moronge (Cross-Country skiing), and Daniel Safari Katheku (Para skiing), the team's last hope, were unable to compete due to a variety of factors.

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This puts their dream of competing in the Winter Olympics in doubt, but the growth of hockey in Kenya suggests that the international dream may not be as far away as one might think.

Inadequate rinks

The Panari Hotel, which serves both Kenya and East Africa, is the country's only rink. The facility is also open to the public, and players must train at odd hours. They train on Wednesday nights and Saturday mornings.

The Panari rink, which serves a large population, is also underequipped. It is only one-third the size of a standard-size rink!

The Ice Sports Federation recently requested that the government build a full-size rink to supplement the Panari rink and provide players with adequate training and competition facilities.

It is costly

Starting, maintaining, and operating a rink can be expensive.

However, if rinks are available, even hustlers can participate. But this depends on your 'class consciousness'.

A basic ice-skating program can cost as much as Kshs 18,000 for eight lessons, while an ice hockey program can cost as much as Kshs 25,000 for ten classes. Skating costs Kshs 1000 for children under the age of 12 and Kshs 1200 for all ages 13 and older per 60-minute session, which includes skating boots.