hockey tournament

Canberra is home to Australia’s newest national ice hockey tournament – the Maple Leaf Cup – and it’s being sponsored by the Canadian High Commission as part of its national day celebrations.

The new invitational tournament in its inaugural year will feature teams from Penrith, Blacktown, Canberra and Geelong and will be conducted throughout almost the entire day from noon on Saturday, June 19.

The Maple Leaf Cup will be awarded to the champion under-13 team in this knockout tournament in which every team will play three games before moving into the play-off round.

The Canadian High Commissioner, Jean Fournier said the Maple Leaf Cup would be the first event of this year’s Canada Week, which celebrates Canada’s 137^th birthday on July 1.

“We want to encourage the growth of this great sport in a nation where ice hockey, though played here since the early 1900s, is still considered a novelty for most Australians,” he said.

The Maple Leaf tournament chairman, Dr Bear McPhail, said it was a very exciting development for local ice hockey, as well as for Australian ice hockey generally.

“The support of the Canadian High Commission has made this all possible, as has the commitment of so many teams from around Australia,” Dr McPhail said. “We had to knock back teams from Newcastle and Melbourne who applied too late, so we know this can only get bigger and better in the years to come,” he added.

The idea for the tournament came from the Canadian High Commission – representing a country most often identified as ice hockey’s natural home – whose diplomatic staff from time to time have included families who play ice hockey during their postings.

“Our week of festivities includes the 15^th annual Terry Fox Fun Run for cancer research to be held on Sunday June 20, following the tournament,” the High Commissioner added.

Media diary note: Join Canadian High Commissioner Jean Fournier, Dr McPhail and several ice hockey players in full equipment at the Canadian High Commission in Commonwealth Avenue for a photo opportunity at 10.30am on Thursday, June 10.


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