Jamaica and Qatar join ice hockey family

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Published time: May 18, 2012 13:03
Edited time: May 18, 2012 17:03

The International Ice Hockey Federation has grown to 72 members after accepting the frost-deprived countries of Jamaica and Qatar as its newest members.

­According to the official IIHF website, Jamaica joins the hockey family as an associate member, while Qatar gets a full membership under the precondition of an audit.

The Jamaican Olympic Ice Hockey Federation was founded last winter. The Caribbean country can boast one ice rink and currently has just 20 players.

Meanwhile, the history of the Qatar Ice Hockey Federation is a lot longer, having existed since 2010.

The Gulf country became the third nation from the region after United Arab Emirates and Kuwait to join IIHF.

There are two ice rinks in Qatar, both in the capital Doha, and a hockey league, consisting of five teams.

The decision to accept Qatar and Jamaica was made at the IIHF Annual Congress in Helsinki, held during the Hockey World Championships jointly hosted by Finland and Sweden.

The tournament’s semifinals are to take place on Saturday, with Finland playing Russia and the Czech Republic taking on Slovakia.