On April 6th, at the Shougang Ice Hockey Hall in Shougang Beijing Park, sponsored by the International Ice Hoc key Federation, organized by the Winter Sports Management Center of the General Admi nistration of Sport of China, Chinese Ice Hockey Association, and the Beiji ng Municipal Bureau of Sports, co-organized by Shougang Park Sports Center, the Group B Game of Class A of 2019 International Women’s Ice Hockey World Championships was kicked off, as the first international class A event since the opening of Shougang Ice Hockey Hall.

At the opening ceremony, Li Yingchuan, Deputy Director of the General Administration of Sport of China, announced the opening of the game; Hu Wenxin, Vice Chairman of the International Ice Hockey Federation and President of the Competition Committee and Meng Jun, Deputy Secretary General of the Beijing Municipal Government delivered speeches. Cao Weidong, President of Chinese Ice Ho ckey Association, Zhao Wen, Director of Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sports, Zhang Gongyan, Secretary of Party Committee, Chairman and General Manager of Shougang Group, Chen Jie, Deputy Director of Beijing Municipal Bureau of Sports, Liang Jie, Deputy General Manager of Shougang Group, and Wang Chunlu, Deputy Secretary General of Chinese Ice Hockey Association,  all attended the opening ceremony. About 2,000 ice hockey fans watched the game at the scene.

The Chinese team played against the Latvian team in the first match of the day, which began at 13:00. The Chinese women united and fought bravely to win a good start with a 3-0 victory over the Latvian team, who had won second place in the last game.

The event was highly valued by the participating countries and received extensive attention from all walks of life. A total of six women’s ice hockey teams from China, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Latvia, the Netherlands, and Poland came to Shougang Ice Hockey Hall. There will be 15 exciting competitions for us in the week-long tournament.

As a venue, Shougang Park Sports Center not only guarantees the infrastructure of the event, but also provides security, cleaning, spectator services, and other professional support services, which has been well received by the organizing committee, athletes, and spectators. The undertaking of the 2019 IIHF Women’s Ice Hockey World championships is not only a promotion of Shougang Ice Hockey Hall, but also a contribution to promote the development of Chinese ice hockey and the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games. The Chinese women’s ice hockey team beat the South Korean team with a score of 5-2 on April 7th.

“The conditions of the Shougang Ice Hockey Hall are very good, and the game is like being held at home, and everyone is very confident.” said Yu Baiwei, the leader of the Chinese women’s ice hockey team, in an interview with the media.