The 4th Africa Cup Inline Hockey Championships was a week filled with excitement and anticipation as supporters went wild and players gave it their best shot.
From 22 to 27 August 2022, the MTC Dome Namibia had 250 players from 12 different nationalities compete in one of the fastest-moving team sports in the world. The countries represented were; Namibia, South Africa, Switzerland, England, Germany, USA, Canada, France, Australia, Brazil, Mexico and Italy.
For those that don’t know the sport Inline Hockey or Roller Hockey; it is a derivative of Ice Hockey. But instead of playing on the ice with ice skates, they play on a hard smooth surface with inline/roller skates. Players use hockey sticks to manipulate the puck (a piece of hard plastic) into their opponent’s goal to score points, providing the spectators with quite a thrilling show.
34 teams competed in 9 different categories; the youngest being, a first for this event, was the Under 6, followed by Under 10, Under 14, Under 18, Under 22, Under 30, Rookies, Adult Silver and Pros. The games were executed in the traditional round-robin fashion, with a few skill competitions in the mix, until they had their semi-finals and finals. The live stream of the games can be viewed on Tv2Namibia.
“The Africa Cup Inline Hockey Championships is one of the few sports that accommodate such a large variety of divisions, from ages under 6 to veterans, all within one tournament. It was a true family affair”, said Fanus Engelbrecht, CEO of MTC Dome Namibia.
In the Pro division, there were two Namibian National teams (Senior and Junior Men) competing along with international teams, PGKA Alliance, PAMA Golden Knights, Swiss Alliance, and Ninja Hockey Shop.
On the final day, the international team, PGKA Golden Knights, beat the Namibian National Senior Men’s team 8-3. This too can be viewed on YouTube; Africa Cup Inline Hockey: Final Day
The PGKA Golden Knights is a multi-national team consisting of a whopping 8 nationalities and has the only female playing in the Pro division.
The winning results for the 4th Africa Cup Inline Hockey Championships are as follows;
To the MTC Dome Namibia, hosting the Africa Cup Inline Hockey Championships for the 4th time, it was another successful accomplishment. As the only High-Performance Centre in Namibia, we were honoured very recently, to be accredited internationally by the ASPC. We believe there will be many more events of this magnitude and greater in the future.
Read more about this exhilarating event and what Dave Hammond (Chairman of the World Skate Africa and Africa Cup Inline Hockey) has to say to Namibia Media Holding (NMH).
More about the Africa Cup Inline Hockey Championship
The Africa Cup Inline Hockey Championships was established in 2017 and has since then become an annual event at the MTC Dome Namibia, with the exception of 2020 and 2021 due to Covid-19. They plan on partnering with World Skate Africa, which could lead this tournament to join the Africa Skate Games. This would broaden the horizons and potentially include other disciplines, such as Speed Skating, Rink Hockey, Downhill, Freestyle, Artistic, Roller Derby and Skateboarding. The hope is to use the Africa Cup Inline Hockey Championships as a qualifier for the World Skate Championships, providing the opportunity for African countries to compete in the big leagues.
The main focus for the Africa Cup Inline Hockey Championships, as set out by Dave Hammond, is to create an experience for all. The players get to experience game awards, interviews, live streaming, commentating, tournament MVP (Most Valuable Player) and all-star awards. The spectators get to experience action-packed entertainment, with good food, a fully serviced bar, and the surroundings of the Namib Desert, the oldest desert in the world.
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