Men's tournament 1920 Summer Olympics The
men's tournament held at the
1920 Summer Olympics was organized by a committee that included future LIHG president
Paul Loicq. The tournament used the
Bergvall System, in which three rounds were played. Canada won all three of the team's games in the first round and won the gold medal, defeating Sweden in the final and outscoring opponents 27–1. In the two subsequent rounds, the United States and Czechoslovakia won the silver and bronze medals respectively. The Bergvall System was criticized, especially in Sweden, because the Swedish team had to play six games (winning three) while the bronze medal-winning Czechoslovak team only had to play three (winning one).
Erik Bergvall, the creator of the system, stated that it was used incorrectly and that a tournament of all of the losing teams from the first round should have been played for the silver medal. This format was used until
1988, although the number of teams and games played varied slightly. The
Toronto Granites, representing
Canada, became one of the most dominant hockey teams in Olympic history, outscoring opponents 110–3, led by
Harry Watson, who scored 36 goals. The
United States won silver and
Great Britain won bronze. Watson's 36 goals remains the tournament record for career goals. He also set the all-time record for career points with 36 (assists were not counted at the time), which stood until 2010. Eleven teams participated in the
1928 Winter Olympics in
St. Moritz, Switzerland. The defending champion
Canadian team was given a
bye to the medal round and won all of its games by a combined score of 38–0. The
Swedish and
Swiss teams won their first medals—silver and bronze respectively—and a
German team participated for the first time, finishing ninth. At the
1932 Winter Olympics,
Canada, represented by the
Winnipeg Hockey Club, won gold in a tournament that consisted of four teams that played each other twice.
Germany won bronze, the nation's first medal in the sport. . Two days before the
1936 Winter Olympics in
Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, Canadian officials protested that two players on the
British team–
James Foster and
Alex Archer–had played in Canada but transferred without permission to play for clubs in the
English National League. The IIHF agreed with Canada, but Great Britain threatened to withdraw the team if the two were barred from competing. To avoid a conflict, Canada withdrew the protest shortly before the Games began. The tournament consisted of four groups and fifteen teams.
Great Britain became the first non-Canadian team to win gold;
Canada won silver and the
United States bronze.
Challenges to the definition of amateur The
Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) revised its definition of amateur and broke away from the
Amateur Athletic Union of Canada in 1936, despite the possibility that its players may no longer be eligible for Olympic hockey.
Tommy Lockhart founded the
Amateur Hockey Association of the United States (AHAUS) in 1937, after disagreements with the
Amateur Athletic Union of the United States over international amateurs. The CAHA and the AHAUS joined to form the
International Ice Hockey Association in 1940. Its president
W. G. Hardy sought for acceptance by the
International Olympic Committee (IOC) on terms acceptable to the CAHA. CAHA president
George Dudley subsequently threatened to withdraw Canada from the Olympics over the definition of amateur. An IOC decision on the matter was postponed when the
1940 Winter Olympics and
1944 Winter Olympics were cancelled due to
World War II. In 1947, ice hockey's world governing body, the
LIHG, agreed to a merger with the International Ice Hockey Association, was subsequently renamed to the
International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), and recognized the AHAUS as the governing body of hockey in the United States instead of the AAU.
1948–1952 The IIHF considered whether to have an ice hockey tournament at the
1948 Winter Olympics in
St. Moritz, or host a separate
Ice Hockey World Championships elsewhere in Switzerland in 1948.
Avery Brundage of the
United States Olympic Committee (USOC) reportedly campaigned to IIHF delegates to vote against inclusion of the AHAUS in the upcoming Olympics. The LIHG passed a resolution that its teams would only play against teams approved by the CAHA and the AHAUS, which was accepted by the Swiss Olympic organizing committee. Brundage threatened that the USOC would boycott the Olympics if the AHAUS team was recognized. Brundage and the AAU supported a
National Collegiate Athletic Association team instead. Both
Czechoslovakia and
Canada won seven games and tied when they played each other. The gold medal winner was determined by
goal difference: Canada won the gold because it had an average of 13.8 goals per game compared to Czechoslovakia's average of 4.3. Czechoslovakia's team was quickly improving; it won the
1947 and
1949 World Championships.
Switzerland won the bronze medal, and the AHAUS team finished fourth in the standings in 1948. Discussions began in 1950, whether or not ice hockey would be included in the
1952 Winter Olympics hosted in
Oslo. The IOC sought assurance that participating teams would adhere to its amateur code rather than what was accepted by the IIHF, and also wanted to exclude IIHF president
Fritz Kraatz from negotiations. George Dudley and W. G. Hardy agreed there would be no negotiations on those terms, nor would they repudiate Kraatz. Dudley referred to the IOC as dictatorial and undemocratic, and expected the IIHF to discuss having its own 1952 Ice Hockey World Championships instead. He further stated that the Olympics would be a financial failure without the inclusion of hockey. After discussions, hockey was ultimately included in the Olympics, and the gold medal was won by
Canada, represented by the
Edmonton Mercurys, for the second consecutive Games. It would be the last time that a Canadian team would win a gold medal in hockey for 50 years. The
United States won silver and
Sweden won bronze. A team from
Finland competed for the first time.
1956–1976 of the Soviet Union is the only male athlete to have won three gold medals and one silver in ice hockey. The
Soviet Union competed in its first World Championship in
1954, defeating Canada and winning the gold medal. At the
1956 Winter Olympics in
Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, the
Soviet team went undefeated and won its first gold medal.
Canada, represented by the
Kitchener-Waterloo Dutchmen, lost to the Soviets and the
United States in the medal round, winning the bronze. At the
1964 Winter Olympics in
Innsbruck, Austria, the
Soviet team won all seven of its games, earning the gold medal.
Canada finished the tournament with five wins and two losses, putting the team in a three-way tie for second place with
Sweden and
Czechoslovakia. Before 1964, the tie-breaking procedure was based on goal difference in games against teams in the medal round; under that system, Canada would have placed third ahead of the Czechoslovak team. During the tournament the procedure was changed to take all games into consideration, which meant that the Canadians finished fourth. At the time, the Olympics also served as the World Championships; under the IIHF's unchanged rules, Canada should have received bronze for the World Championships. The
Soviet Union won its third gold medal with a 7–1 record in the
1968 Grenoble Olympics.
Czechoslovakia and
Canada won the silver and bronze medals, respectively. It was the last time that the Olympics were counted as the World Championships, as in
1972 the first standalone World Championship was held in an Olympic year. In 1970, Canada withdrew from international ice hockey competition protesting the use of full-time "amateurs" by the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia, In
1971, the United States finished last at the World Championships and was relegated to
Pool B. The team then qualified for the 1972 Olympics and won silver, making it the first Pool B team to win an Olympic medal.
Czechoslovakia won the bronze medal in 1972. In 1976,
Czechoslovakia won the silver and
West Germany won bronze. Along with Canada, the Swedish team did not participate in the 1976 tournament, joining the Canadian boycott over the rules favoring the Soviet Union.
1980: "Miracle on Ice" at the
2002 Winter Olympics. The Winter Olympics returned to Lake Placid, New York in
1980. Twelve teams participated in the
tournament, including
Canada for the first time since 1968. The Soviet Union had won the gold medal in five of the six previous Winter Olympic Games, and were the favorites to win once more in Lake Placid. The team consisted of full-time professional players with significant experience in international play. By contrast, the United States' team—led by head coach
Herb Brooks—consisted exclusively of amateur players with mostly
college experience, and was the youngest team in the tournament and in U.S. national team history. In the group stage, both the Soviet and American teams were unbeaten; the U.S. achieved several notable results, including a 2–2 draw against Sweden, and a 7–3 upset victory over second-place favorites
Czechoslovakia. For the first game in the medal round, the United States played the Soviet Union. The first period finished tied at 2–2, and the Soviets led 3–2 following the second. The U.S. team then scored two more goals to take their first lead during the third and final period, winning the game 4–3. Following the game, the U.S. went on to clinch the gold medal by defeating
Finland in the final game. The Soviet Union took the silver medal by beating
Sweden. The victory became one of the most iconic moments of the Winter Olympic Games and in U.S. sports. Equally well-known was the television call of the final seconds of the game by
Al Michaels for
ABC, in which he said: "Do you believe in miracles?! YES!" In 1999,
Sports Illustrated named the "
Miracle on Ice" the top sports moment of the 20th century. As part of its centennial celebration in 2008, the
International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) named the "Miracle on Ice" as the best international ice hockey story of the past 100 years.
1984–1994 At the
1984 Winter Olympics in
Sarajevo,
Yugoslavia, the
Soviet Union won its sixth gold medal.
Czechoslovakia and
Sweden won the silver and bronze medals, respectively. The
1988 Winter Olympics were held in
Calgary,
Alberta, Canada, where the
Soviet team captured its seventh and final gold medal. The Soviets' last Olympic game ended in a loss to
Finland. The Finnish team was not considered a serious medal contender–it had competed in the World Championships since
1939 and had not won a single medal. However, Finland upset the Soviets 2–1 and won silver. The IIHF decided to change the tournament format because in several cases, the gold medal winner had been decided before the final day of play. During a congress in 1990, the IIHF introduced a playoff system. The new system was used at the
1992 Winter Olympics in
Albertville, France. Preliminary round-robin games were held and followed by an eight-team cup-system style medal round that culminated in a gold medal game. Before 1989, players who lived in the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia and other nations behind the
Iron Curtain were not allowed to leave and play in the
National Hockey League (NHL) by their respective governments. Soviet officials agreed to allow some players to leave for the NHL following the
1989 World Championships. The Soviet Union dissolved in December 1991. Nine former Soviet states became part of the IIHF and started competing internationally, including the successor state
Russia, as well as
Belarus,
Kazakhstan,
Latvia and
Ukraine. At the 1992 Olympics, Russia and some other former Soviet states competed as one entity, known as the
Unified Team. Czechoslovakia split into the
Czech Republic and
Slovakia in January 1993. The IIHF recognized the Czech Republic as the successor to Czechoslovakia, allowing the team to retain its position in the top World Championship division, while Slovakia started in the lowest division (
Pool C) in 1994 and was forced to work its way up. Both nations competed in the tournament at the
1994 Winter Olympics, as did
Russia.
Slovakia and
Finland both finished the preliminary round undefeated, but Slovakia lost their medal round quarter-final game to Russia in
overtime. In the semi-finals,
Sweden defeated Russia and
Canada beat Finland, with the latter going on to win the bronze medal game. In the gold medal game between Sweden and Canada, a rematch of the group stage game that Canada won, both teams finished regulation and overtime play tied at 2–2. In the resulting
shootout, the first in Olympic competition, both nations scored two goals, which resulted in a sudden death shootout.
Peter Forsberg of Sweden scored one of the most famous goals in Olympic history by faking a forehand shot, then sliding a one-handed backhand shot past goaltender
Corey Hirsch. Canada's final shooter
Paul Kariya's shot was saved by
Tommy Salo and Sweden won the game and its first gold medal.
1998–2014 and the
Czech Republic was the first played between teams consisting primarily of NHL players. In 1995, an agreement to release NHL players to participate in the Olympics was reached between the IOC, IIHF, NHL, and
National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA). Led by goaltender
Dominik Hašek, the Czech team defeated
Russia in the final, winning its first gold medal in the sport. Following the tournament, NHL commissioner
Gary Bettman commented that it "was what we had predicted and hoped for from a pure hockey perspective, [it was] a wonderful tournament". of Finland is the all-time leading scorer in the men's tournament. The team then lost to
Canada in the semi-final and
Russia in the bronze medal game, respectively. The Canadian team rebounded from a disappointing first round and defeated the
American team in the gold medal game, winning their first gold medal in 50 years and seventh in men's hockey overall. The tournament format was again adjusted for
2006. In the semi-finals,
Sweden defeated the
Czech Republic, and
Finland defeated
Russia. Sweden won the gold medal with a 3–2 victory over Finland and the Czech Republic won the bronze medal. Three months later, Sweden won the
2006 World Championships and became the first team to win the Olympic and World Championship gold in the same year. Allegations have surfaced of Sweden throwing a game against
Slovakia so the Swedes would face
Switzerland in the quarter-finals instead of
Canada or the Czech Republic. Shortly before the game, Sweden coach
Bengt-Åke Gustafsson was reported to have publicly contemplated tanking in order to avoid those teams, saying about Canada and the Czechs, "One is cholera, the other the plague." 's gold medal-winning overtime goal at the
2010 Winter Olympics. The
2010 Winter Olympics were held in
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, the first time since NHL players started competing that the Olympics were held in a city with an NHL team.
Teemu Selänne of
Finland scored his 37th point, breaking the record of 36 first set by Canadian Harry Watson in 1924 and later tied by
Vlastimil Bubník of Czechoslovakia and
Valeri Kharlamov of the Soviet Union. In the gold medal game,
Canada and the
United States ended regulation play with a 2–2 tie, making it only the second Olympic gold medal match to go into overtime. Canadian player
Sidney Crosby scored the winning goal 7:40 into overtime play to give Canada its eighth gold medal in men's hockey. The
2014 Winter Olympics were held in
Sochi, Russia, and retained the same game format used in Vancouver 2010, while returning to the larger IIHF-sized ice rinks.
Slovenia participated for the first time, upsetting
Slovakia in the round-robin before losing to
Sweden in the quarterfinals 0–5, for its best finish in any international tournament.
Latvia upset
Switzerland 3–1 in the qualification playoffs, also making it to the Olympic quarterfinals for the first time, where they were narrowly defeated by
Canada 2–1. Host nation
Russia, considered a pre-tournament favourite, lost 3–1 in the quarterfinals to
Finland and finished fifth. Entering the semi-finals undefeated after outscoring opponents 20–6, the
United States lost to Canada 0–1 and then lost the bronze medal game against
Finland 0–5. Teemu Selänne scored six more points in the tournament, was named tournament MVP and boosted his modern-era Olympic career record for points to 43 (24 goals, 19 assists). At the age of 43, he also set records as both the oldest Olympic goal-scorer and oldest Olympic ice hockey medal winner. Canada defeated Sweden 3–0 to win its ninth Olympic gold medal. The team did not trail at any point over the course of the tournament, and became the first back-to-back gold medal winner since the start of NHL participation in 1998.
2018–2022 The
ice hockey tournament at the
2018 Winter Olympics in
Pyeongchang was held without participation of active NHL players for the first time since the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer. As a consequence of a
doping scandal, the IOC suspended the
Russian Olympic Committee, but allowed Russian athletes to compete under the Olympic flag after passing anti-doping tests. The final was played between
Germany, who unexpectedly eliminated
Canada in the semi-final, and the
Olympic Athletes from Russia. In the final, the Russian team prevailed, defeating Germany 4–3 in overtime and securing the gold medal after
Kirill Kaprizov scored the winning goal. The Russian players sang the banned anthem during the medal ceremony, but the IOC decided not to pursue any action. Canada won the bronze medal over the
Czech Republic. Although NHL players were originally scheduled to participate at the
2022 Winter Olympics in
Beijing, the league and the NHL Players' Association announced on 21 December 2021 that they would be pulling out of the tournament, citing the impact of the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic.. In the
tournament,
Finland won their first-ever gold medal after going unbeaten and defeating the
Russian Olympic Committee 2–1 in the final.
Slovakia defeated
Sweden 4–0 in the bronze medal game for their first-ever medal. For the first time in history, the
Czech Republic did not qualify for the quarter-finals and finished in ninth place, their lowest placement in history.
Women's tournament Addition to the programme is the all-time leading scorer in the women's tournament and was named tournament MVP twice. At the
99th IOC Session in July 1992, the IOC voted to approve women's hockey as an Olympic event beginning with the
1998 Winter Olympics as part of their effort to increase the number of female athletes at the Olympics. Women's ice hockey had not been in the programme when Nagano, Japan had won the right to host the Olympics in June 1991, and the decision required approval by the Nagano Winter Olympic Organizing Committee (NAOOC). The NAOOC was initially hesitant to include the event because of the additional costs of staging the tournament and because they felt their team, which had failed to qualify for
that year's World Championships, could not be competitive. Part of the agreement was that the tournament would be limited to six teams, and no additional facilities would be built. The CAHA also agreed to help build and train the Japanese team so that it could be more competitive. The IOC had agreed that if the NAOOC had not approved the event, it would be held at the
2002 Winter Olympics.
1998–2006 Before 1998, women's hockey had been dominated by
Canada. Canadian teams had won every World Championship up to that point; however, by 1997, the
American team had improved and was evenly matched with Canada. In thirteen games played between the two teams in 1997, Canada won seven and the United States won six. The 1998 Olympic tournament also included teams from
Finland,
Sweden,
China and host
Japan. Canada and the United States dominated the round-robin portion. In their head-to-head match, the United States overcame a 4–1 deficit to win 7–4. The two teams met in the final, which the United States won 3–1 to become the third American ice hockey team to win Olympic gold. Finland defeated China 4–1 to win the bronze medal. and the
United States in 2002 For the
2002 Winter Olympics, the number of teams was increased to eight with
Russia,
Germany and
Kazakhstan qualifying for the first time. The Canadian and American teams went undefeated in the first round and semi-finals, setting up a gold medal rematch that the Canadian team won 3–2. Following the game, members of the Canadian team accused the Americans of stomping on a Canadian flag in their dressing room, although an investigation later proved the rumour false. The Swedish team won the bronze medal over Finland 2–1, the nation's first in women's ice hockey. In
2006, Sweden defeated the US in a shootout in the semi-finals, marking the first time the US had lost to an opponent other than Canada. The upset drew comparisons to the Miracle on Ice from 1980. In the medal games, Canada defeated Sweden 4–1 to claim its second consecutive gold medal, while the Americans beat Finland 4–0 to win the bronze.
2010 and debate on removal from the Olympics In
2010, eight teams participated, including
Slovakia for the first time. In the gold medal game, Canada defeated the United States 2–0 to win their third consecutive gold. The
Finnish team won the bronze medal over Sweden 3–2 OT, their first since 1998. The future of international women's ice hockey was discussed at the
World Hockey Summit in 2010, and dealt with how IIHF member associations could work together to grow the game and increase registration numbers, and the relative strength of the women's game in North America compared to the rest of the world.
International Olympic Committee president
Jacques Rogge raised concerns that the women's hockey tournament might be eliminated from the Olympics since the event was not competitively balanced and was dominated by Canada and the United States. Team Canada captain
Hayley Wickenheiser explained that the talent gap between the North American and European countries was due to the presence of women's professional leagues in North America, along with year-round training facilities. She stated the European players were talented, but their respective national team programs were not given the same level of support as the European men's national teams, or the North American women's national teams. She stressed the need for women to have their own professional league which would be for the benefit of international hockey. IIHF vice-president
Murray Costello promised to invest $2-million towards developing international women's hockey.
2014–2022 team celebrates shortly after winning the bronze medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics. It was the first medal for the country in women's hockey. At the
2014 Winter Olympics, Canada defeated the United States 3–2, as
Marie-Philip Poulin scored at 8:10 of overtime to win their fourth consecutive gold, rebounding from a two-nothing deficit late in the game. With the win, Canadians
Hayley Wickenheiser,
Jayna Hefford and
Caroline Ouellette became the first athletes to win four ice hockey gold medals. They also joined Soviet biathlete
Alexander Tikhonov and German speedskater
Claudia Pechstein as the only athletes to win gold medals in four straight Winter Olympics. In the bronze medal game
Switzerland beat Sweden 4–3 to win their first women's medal. In
2018, the
United States defeated
Canada for the gold medal in a shootout, winning 3–2. The Americans' winning the gold medal game marks the first time in 20 years that the United States took home a gold medal in women's hockey. They previously won in
1998 in
Nagano, Japan, which was also against Canada. Canada's loss effectively ended their winning streak of four consecutive winter games, having won since
2002. The
2022 edition was played with ten teams for the first time.
Canada won their fifth gold medal, defeating the United States in the final 3–2.
Finland defeated
Switzerland 4–0 for the bronze medal. The final standings were a repeat of the
2021 IIHF Women's World Championship. ==Rules==