Kuwait men's national ice hockey team
The Kuwait national ice hockey team (Arabic: منتخب الكويت لهوكي الجليد) is the national men's ice hockey team of Kuwait. The team is controlled by the Kuwait Ice Hockey Association and a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) since 8 May 2009.[2] As of 28 May 2023, Kuwait is currently ranked 50th in the IIHF World Ranking. Kuwait participated in the IIHF Challenge Cup of Asia, a regional tournament for lower-tier hockey nations in Asia, from 2010 to 2018. Kuwait made its World Championship debut at the 2018 Division III Qualification tournament.[3][4]
The emblem of Kuwait is the badge used on the players jerseys. | |
| Nickname(s) | Falcons (الصقور) |
|---|---|
| Association | Kuwait Ice Hockey Association |
| General manager | Fuhaid Al-Ajmi |
| Head coach | Marko Ziđarević |
| Assistants | Meshal Al-Ajmi |
| Captain | Abdullah Al-Maragi |
| Most games | Ahmad Al-Ajmi (107) |
| Top scorer | Ahmad Al-Ajmi (71) |
| Most points | Ahmad Al-Ajmi (133) |
| Home stadium | Kuwait Winter Games Club Ice Skating Rink |
| Team colors | |
| IIHF code | KUW |
| Ranking | |
| Current IIHF | 52 2 (27 May 2024)[1] |
| Highest IIHF | 50 (2018–19, 2023) |
| Lowest IIHF | 52 (2022, 2024) |
| First international | |
| Japan 44–1 Kuwait (Gangneung, South Korea; 30 January 1999) | |
| Biggest win | |
| Kuwait 39–2 India (Kuwait City, Kuwait; 26 April 2011) | |
| Biggest defeat | |
| Japan 44–1 Kuwait (Gangneung, South Korea; 30 January 1999) | |
| IIHF World Championships | |
| Appearances | 4 (first in 2018) |
| Best result | 49th (2022) |
| Asian Winter Games | |
| Appearances | 4 (first in 1999) |
| Best result | 6th (1999) |
| Arab Cup | |
| Appearances | 2 (first in 2008) |
| Best result | 2nd (2008, 2023) |
| IIHF Asia and Oceania Championship | |
| Appearances | 8 (first in 2010) |
| Best result | 4th (2011, 2012, 2013) |
| GCC Gulf Championship | |
| Appearances | 4 (first in 2010) |
| Best result | 2nd (2010, 2012, 2014) |
| International record (W–L–T) | |
| 46–65–1 | |
History
In 1985, Kuwait had joined the IIHF, but was expelled in 1992 due to a lack of ice hockey activity.[5] In 1999, Kuwait played their first games at the 1999 Asian Winter Games against Japan, China, and Mongolia, losing all three.[6] In 2007, Kuwait returned to international play at the 2007 Asian Winter Games where they recorded their first win against Macau.[6] The following year they competed in the Arab Cup finishing second after losing to the United Arab Emirates in the final.[7] In 2009, Kuwait re-admitted into the IIHF as an associate member.[2] In 2010, Kuwait competed in their first Challenge Cup of Asia, finishing seventh overall,[8] and in 2014, finishing 6th overall, losing all five games, and were relegated to Division I. Also they participated in the Kuwaiti organized Gulf Championship, finishing second behind the United Arab Emirates.[9]
Tournament record
World Championships
| Year | Host | Result | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1930 through 1992 | did not enter | ||||||
| 1993 through 2008 | Expelled from IIHF[5] | ||||||
| 2009 through 2017 | did not enter | ||||||
| 2018 | Sarajevo | 50th place (4th in Division III Q) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 2019 | Abu Dhabi | 51st place (5th in Division III Q) | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2020 and 2021 | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic[10][11] | ||||||
| 2022 | Bishkek | 49th place (5th in Division IV) | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2023 | Ulaanbaatar | 54th place (3rd in Division IV) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2024 | Kuwait City | 54th place (3rd in Division IV) | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Asian Winter Games
| Year | Host | Result | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Gangneung | 6th place | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2003 | Aomori | did not participate | |||||
| 2007 | Changchun | 7th place | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2011 | Astana | 11th place (6th in Premier Division) | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Competed as Athletes from Kuwait | |||||||
| 2017 | Sapporo | 16th place (6th in Division II) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Competed as Independent Olympic Athletes | |||||||
Arab Cup/GCC Gulf Championship
| Year | Host | Result | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arab Cup (2008) | |||||||
| 2008 | Abu Dhabi | 2nd place | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| GCC Gulf Championship (2010–2016) | |||||||
| 2010 | Kuwait City | 2nd place | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2012 | Abu Dhabi | 2nd place | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2014 | Kuwait City | 2nd place | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 2016 | Doha | 3rd place | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| GCC Games (2022) | |||||||
| 2022 | Kuwait City | 3rd place | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Arab Cup (2023–) | |||||||
| 2023 | Kuwait City | 2nd place | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Asia and Oceania Championship
| Year | Host | Result | Pld | W | OTW | OTL | L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 and 2009 | did not participate | ||||||
| 2010 | Taipei City | 7th place | 6 | 2 | – | 1* | 3 |
| 2011 | Kuwait City | 4th place | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 2012 | Dehradun | 4th place | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2013 | Bangkok | 4th place | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 2014 | Abu Dhabi | 6th place | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 2015 | Kuwait City | 6th place (1st in Division I) | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 | Abu Dhabi | did not participate | |||||
| 2017 | Kuwait City | 6th place (1st in Division I) | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | Pasay | 5th place | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
All-time record against other national teams
Last match update: 22 April 2024[6]
| Team | GP | W | T | L | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 4 |
| Bahrain | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 67 | 12 |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 17 |
| China | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 46 |
| Chinese Taipei | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 14 | 60 |
| Hong Kong | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 36 |
| India | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 70 | 11 |
| Indonesia | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 9 |
| Iran | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 9 |
| Japan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 44 |
| Kyrgyzstan | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 18 | 37 |
| Lebanon | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 9 |
| Macau | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 35 | 7 |
| Malaysia | 9 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 49 | 35 |
| Mongolia | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 12 | 50 |
| Morocco | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 3 |
| Oman | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 94 | 13 |
| Qatar | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 26 | 16 |
| Saudi Arabia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 10 |
| Singapore | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 12 |
| Thailand | 10 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 17 | 81 |
| Tunisia | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 4 |
| Turkmenistan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 24 |
| United Arab Emirates | 17 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 19 | 83 |
| Total | 112 | 46 | 1 | 65 | 516 | 667 |
References
- "IIHF Men's World Ranking". IIHF. 27 May 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
- "Welcome, Georgia & Kuwait". International Ice Hockey Federation. 13 May 2009. Archived from the original on 28 December 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2009.
- "27 tournaments assigned". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
- "2018 Events". International Ice Hockey Federation. 22 May 2017.
- Szemberg, Szymon; Podnieks, Andrew (2008). "Story #42;Breakup of old Europe creates a new hockey world". International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 28 December 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2009.
- "Kuwait-Men-All-Time-Results.pdf" (PDF). National Teams of Ice Hockey. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 December 2017. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
- "Arab Cup victory for Emirates". International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 15 July 2010. Retrieved 14 May 2010.
- "2010 IIHF Challenge Cup of Asia". International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 19 April 2010. Retrieved 13 April 2010.
- Merk, Martin (8 June 2010). "UAE wins Gulf Championship". International Ice Hockey Federation. Archived from the original on 11 June 2010. Retrieved 9 June 2010.
- "IIHF cancels March tournaments". iihf.com. 2 March 2020.
- "IIHF – IIHF Council announces more cancellations". International Ice Hockey Federation. Retrieved 18 November 2020.