Canadian women take gold at first Women’s Ice Hockey World Championships. Given the popularity of women’s ice hockey today, it’s hard to believe that prior to 1990, it had a very low profile. Not until March 19, 1990 did the International Ice Hockey Association open a World Championship to women. On that date, Ottawa played host for three days to nine teams from Canada, the United States, Finland, Sweden, Switzerland, Norway, West Germany and Japan. Canada clinched gold, the U.S. took silver, and the Fins claimed the bronze. Canada’s women players maintained their gold winning streak in every World Championships to follow through 2004. This level of women’s hockey lead to even greater heights. In 1997 there was great excitement among female hockey players when the International Olympic Committee ruled the top five women’s teams in the sport’s World Championships would become the qualifiers for the Olympics in Nagano, Japan the following year. They’d be the first women Olympic hockey players in history. So, on February 8, 1998, six women’s teams (Japan became the additional automatic qualifier as the Olympics’ host country) battled it out for medals. Juan Antonio Samaranch, president of the International Olympic Committee, was the force behind the decision; he wanted to get as many women as men into sports. At Nagano, the United States won gold, Canada clinched silver and Finland took home bronze. China came in fourth, Sweden fifth and Japan last. Canada’s women’s team did one better in the next Olympic round by capturing the gold at the Salt Lake Olympics in 2002. Perhaps more importantly, the excitement the women’s games generated served as a catalyst for Canada to create and expand girls’ teams and leagues coast to coast.
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