Glad to have one other submit from Richard Loat, who’s travelling with The Hockey Basis Crew at the moment in India

Within the Nineteen Twenties the British had turned the mountains of Himchal Pradesh right into a summer time hill station that was the envy of all in India. Lord Blessington who owned an enormous house overlooking the valleys beneath had a tennis court docket which throughout one fateful winter froze. That day he had an thought which sparked a tradition of ice sports activities in Shimla that has result in one among India’s oldest pockets of Ice Hockey.

India is a rustic the place hockey falls to the underside of the sporting listing in most corners of the nation however within the Northern States the place elevation, chilly climate, and some pioneering hockey fanatics got here collectively has spawned a hockey tradition that’s rising from season to season. 

The Hockey Basis’s journey to India in 2016 is about persevering with the work that was began but in addition reaching elements of the nation that we haven’t been in a position to help earlier than. With donations of kit from cities throughout Canada and the US the Basis has been in a position to help the 150 younger gamers that base themselves out of the Simla Ice Skating Membership. 

Hockey has discovered a house in lots of states throughout India together with Jammu & Kashmir, Himchal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Delhi, and whilst far south as Kerala. 

Since late 2009 hockey within the nation has taken off together with the formation of a Nationwide Ice Hockey Affiliation and the creation of a nationwide crew which lately returned from a visit to Jap Canada the place they performed exhibition video games in opposition to Brampton’s ECHL crew, the Brampton Beast. 
Because the 2016 hockey season for The Hockey Basis will get underway, unlocking the wealthy historical past of ice hockey on this nation could be like discovering hidden gem after hidden gem. Whether or not it’s the robust presence and help for feminine ice hockey in Ladakh, or the ice caretaker in Shimla who has been making the golf equipment ice for over 50 years, the game holds an essential place. 

It’s help from throughout the worldwide hockey neighborhood that permits The Hockey Basis to do the work that we do from main NHL golf equipment to native hockey communities which are bringing smiles to the faces of youngsters 1000’s of miles and time zones internationally