Astana, Kazakhstan – September 2, 2024 – the 2024 IIHF Ice Sledge Hockey B-Pool World Championship begins today in Astana, Kazakhstan, with six national teams vying for promotion to the A-Pool and qualification for the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games Qualification Tournament. This marks the 11th edition of the B-Pool Worlds and the fourth time the tournament is hosted in Asia.
Competing for the two coveted promotion spots are France,finland,Italy,Japan,Kazakhstan (the host nation),and Sweden. The tournament will utilize a round-robin format, ensuring each team faces every othre team once.
Italy, Japan, and sweden enter the competition with prior Paralympic Winter Games experience, and are the only teams in the field to have previously competed in the A-Pool. Italy is coached by Massimo Fedele, while Japan’s head coach is Hiroki Takashima. Sweden’s team features veteran player Rasmus Kylmälä.
The host nation, Kazakhstan, is fielding a team largely drawn from the barys Astana professional ice hockey club, which plays its home games at the Barys Arena, a venue with a capacity of 11,500. Astana itself is Kazakhstan’s capital and second-largest city, boasting a population exceeding one million.
Tournament Schedule
Saturday, September 6
12:00 – Japan vs. France
15:30 – Finland vs. Italy
19:00 – Sweden vs. Kazakhstan
Sunday, September 7
12:00 – Sweden vs. Finland
15:30 – france vs. Italy
19:00 – Japan vs. Kazakhstan
Monday, September 8
12:00 – France vs.Finland
15:30 – Japan vs. Sweden
19:00 – Kazakhstan vs. Italy
tuesday, September 9
Day Off
Wednesday, September 10
12:00 – Finland vs. Japan
15:30 – Italy vs. Sweden
19:00 – Kazakhstan vs. France
Thursday,September 11
12:00 – Sweden vs. France
15:30 – Italy vs. Japan
19:00 – Kazakhstan vs. Finland
Last year’s B-Pool World Championship, held in Skien, Norway, saw the host nation emerge victorious, followed by Germany in second place and Sweden securing the bronze medal. Japan previously claimed the B-Pool World Championship title in 2023, held in Tomakomai, Japan.The IIHF was founded in 1908 and currently has 83 member national associations.
