Indian team to take part in IIHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania C'ship in Thailand

The Indian women's team will participate in the 2023 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's Asia and Oceania Championship in Thailand from April 30 to May 7.

Tsewang Chuskit will captain the India squad with Dr Noor Jahan, a conservationist by training, in charge of the goal. The team is scheduled to depart for Thailand on April 11 but before that players will have their training.

The training of the 20-member Indian Ice Hockey squad, including five debutants, which will be coached by Canadian Darrin Harrold with Tsewang Gyaltson and Amit Belwal assisting him, is being supported by Royal Enfield.

The support from the world's oldest motorcycle company comes after it has announced a partnership with the Indian women's Ice Hockey team in order to strengthen their Olympic ambitions. It is an extension of the relationship of Royal Enfield with UT Ladakh in order to develop winter sports in the region.

To celebrate this partnership, the motorcycle company along with the Ice Hockey Association of India unveiled the new jersey for Team India in the national capital and it was was followed by a panel discussion among the 20 players of the Indian national team, hailing from Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh, on the growth of Ice Hockey across the Himalayas, the development of winter sports and winter tourism.

Royal Enfield is currently working with all stakeholders to grow Ice Hockey, winter sport and winter tourism across the Himalayas. The objective is to build an eco-system for Ice Hockey that will eventually enable Indian players to compete at the highest levels of the sport, including the Winter Olympics.

"It's truly a proud moment for all of us at the Ice Hockey Association of India as our girls prepare to compete at yet another major global championship. Our goal is to ensure that more people across the country see ice hockey as the serious competitive sport it is and not just a winter recreational game. India has huge potential when it comes to winter sports, and we're glad that Royal Enfield has agreed to be a partner in our efforts to grow this sport and enable our players to compete with the best," Harjinder Singh Jindi, General Secretary, Ice Hockey Association of India was quoted as saying in a media release.

Notably, the 18 women from the Union Territory of Ladakh and two from the state of Himachal Pradesh are at the spearhead of a sport that has grown in popularity over the past decade in these mountainous regions.

Owing to the natural formation of ice through the winter months, the sport of Ice Hockey has steadily gained popularity and is passionately played, not only as winter entertainment but also as a serious sport.

"The Himalayas is our spiritual home and our partnership with the Indian Women's Ice Hockey team, is part of our social ambition to work together with 100 Himalayan communities to build resilience and support their ecosystem. Royal Enfield has been commissioned by UT Ladakh to develop a blueprint for Ice Hockey, towards achieving the ambition of Team India competing in the Winter Olympics.

Alongside, we have been supporting the training of coaches and players, both at the grassroots level as well as at advanced levels and with necessary equipment and infrastructure. Tonight, we are proud to host these incredible women and wish them all the best as they head off to the icy battles that lie ahead of them in the Championship," said Bidisha Dey, Executive Director, Eicher Group Foundation, the CSR arm of Royal Enfield.

In 2023, 18 Asian countries will be represented in the IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship programme at different levels. These include Kazakhstan, Korea, Japan, China, the United Arab Emirates, DPR Korea, Turkmenistan, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, Hong Kong (China), Kyrgyzstan, Iran, Singapore, Malaysia, Kuwait, the Philippines, Mongolia and Indonesia.

The IIHF Asia and Oceania Championship (formerly IIHF Challenge Cup of Asia) gives Asian and Oceania members that are not yet part of the World Championship Program the chance to compete and gain valuable game experience. It is also an important platform leading to the Asian Winter Games.