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Tag: Hockey

  • Substandard Accra Hockey pitch forces South Africa to withdraw from African Games hockey

    Substandard Accra Hockey pitch forces South Africa to withdraw from African Games hockey

    South Africa has opted to withdraw both its men’s and women’s hockey teams from the ongoing 13th African Games in Accra.

    This decision aligns with recommendations and guidelines set forth by the International Hockey Federation.

    The withdrawal comes due to concerns regarding the readiness of the Theodosia Okoh Hockey Pitch to host the competition adequately.

    Team SA has communicated this decision to the Local Organising Committee (LOC) and the African Hockey Federation.

    According to South Africa’s Olympic governing body, SASOC, “despite repeated assurances that the pitches would be ready for international-standard competition, the pitches are unsuitable.”

    Additionally, a statement from the organization issued on Monday indicates that it has communicated its reasons for departing from Ghana to the Local Organizing Committee (LOC).

    “In correspondence sent to the LOC, Team SA team leader Ms. Patience Shikwambana states: “Over and above making this decision, our SA Hockey Federation consulted with Sports Flooring Warehouse, a South African-based specialist in carpet laying, and an FIH recognised service provider. They have also advised us – having analysed the images we shared with them – that the field is not satisfactory and may cause harm to the athletes.”

    Ms. Shikwambana also noted: “The rescheduling of the hockey competition, on three numerous occasions has, in addition, caused an inconvenience to us logistically, as a team, where we had to arrange for both the teams to fly to Ghana in time for the commencement of the competition.

    “In the first Chef De Missions’ site visit meeting at the end of October 2023, we were advised that there would be test events to ensure readiness of venues before the start of each competition. This, unfortunately, has not been the case for Hockey. In addition, according to the FIH field certification guideline, ‘If a field that is not certified is being considered as a tournament venue, it should be tested at the earliest convenience to demonstrate compliance with this specification’.

    “These tests should be conducted months in advance before a competition – which, in this case, have not taken place. Furthermore, ‘The FIH has a number of accredited test institutes, and these have accredited engineers located around the world’, which we are not certain if they have been involved and provided the necessary certification.”

    South Africa has already secured qualification for both its men’s and women’s hockey teams for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

    Given the proximity of the African Games to the Paris Olympics and the concerns surrounding the conditions in Accra, it was deemed a potential injury risk for Team SA to compete under these circumstances.

  • Canadian Police apologise to victim of alleged sexual assault in ice hockey case

    Canadian Police apologise to victim of alleged sexual assault in ice hockey case

    The Canadian police apologized for the delay in the charging of five hockey players accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 2018.

    The police in London, Ontario charged four NHL players and one former player last week.

    Police said on Monday that they found new evidence in a review of the case that was not available during the initial investigation.

    All five say they did not do anything wrong and will plead not guilty.

    The five people were on Canada’s World Junior hockey team when the alleged attack happened.

    During a meeting with reporters on Monday, Police Chief Thai Truong said: “I am very sorry to the victim and their family for the long time it took to get to this point. ”

    He said, “I am really upset about this. ”

    The police stopped looking into the alleged assault in 2019 and didn’t charge anyone, but they started investigating again three years later when people in Canada started paying attention to the case.

    Sgt Katherine Dann, who is in charge of looking at the case, said her team discovered that there were more things that could have been done to make the investigation better.

    On Monday, the players’ lawyers went to a court in London to represent their clients for the first time. No players showed up.

    The lawyers asked the court to not allow anyone to say the name of the person who was hurt and two people who saw what happened.

    Five players are accused of sexual assault. Player Mike McLeod is also being accused of being involved in the crime.

    Four players in the NHL are Mr. McLeod and Cal Foote who play for the New Jersey Devils, Carter Hart who plays for the Philadelphia Flyers, and Dillon Dubé who plays for the Calgary Flames.

    The fifth person is Alex Formenton, who used to play in the NHL. Before he was arrested, Mr. Formenton was a player for the Swiss hockey team Ambri-Piotta.

    They have been away from their teams waiting for the case to be decided.

    Sgt Dann said that they have charged all the people they have good reasons to believe did something wrong.

    In 2022, a woman sued Hockey Canada for saying that eight players assaulted her in a hotel room in July 2018. Hockey Canada manages hockey programs and teams in Canada, including the Olympics.

    In May, TSN reported that Hockey Canada had settled with the woman without making a lot of noise about it.

    The news caused a lot of people in Canada to be very upset. Because of this, the organisation lost money from the government and some big sponsorships.

    When he was asked why it took almost six years for the police to file charges and if the police didn’t do a good job at first, Mr. Troung said he couldn’t give more details because it could hurt the investigation.

    He said they will talk about why it took a long time.

    The NHL did a big study, but they won’t share what they found because it’s being decided in court.

    Mr Bettman talked to reporters on Friday at the NHL All-Star weekend in Toronto. He said that NHL players will be free agents at the end of the season and won’t be with their teams during the trial.

    Mr Bettman said it’s best to wait for the end of the court case at this time.

    He also said the accusations were terrible and defended the sport despite the charges.

    “Mr Bettman said that this does not show what really happens in our game. ” “We want everyone to know that our game is for everyone, friendly and secure. ”

    The players have to go to court again on April 30. In Canada, if someone is found guilty of sexual assault, they can be put in prison for up to 10 years.

  • Three Junior Hockey players under investigation for sexually assaulting a minor

    Three former players of the Drummondville Voltigeurs junior hockey team have been accused of sexually assaulting a minor in the fall of 2016, according to Radio-Canada.

    The Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Quebec (LHJMQ) issued a release Tuesday morning addressing the allegations, according to the Montreal Gazette.

    “Both the league and the Drummondville Voltigeurs have just been made aware of the incident that allegedly occurred in 2016. The LHJMQ and its teams will co-operate with the police investigation and the legal process if they are called upon to do so,” the release reads.

    Two of the three players were also minors at the time of the alleged assault but the third, Noah Corson, was an adult. Corson is the son of former Montreal Canadiens player Shayne Corson.

    Corson waived his right to a preliminary hearing and is slated to appear in court in Drummondville in June 2023.

    Étienne Lafleur, Corson’s agent, declined to comment further than denying Corson’s implication in the alleged assault.

    The other two alleged assailants cannot have their identities disclosed due to the Youth Criminal Justice Act.  However, they pleaded guilty in court last year after being charged with sexual assault.

    The accuser, whose name is protected under a publication ban, said she tried to erase the incident from her memory and that she suffered trauma after the attack.

    She recognized the alleged assailants several weeks after the incident at a Voltigeurs game when she saw the photos of the team members on one of the walls.

    “I identified just like that, otherwise I would have never known they were hockey players,” she explained in French in the Radio-Canada article. “I started crying right away. After I realized that they were there and that I had cheered them on, it’s like everything came up all at once.”

    Éric Verrier, the president of the Voltigeurs denounced the players’ behaviour and denied knowing anything about it before the allegations became public.

    “Never, and I mean never, has anyone in the organization been made aware of the incident. I was shocked, I still can’t believe it,” he said. “This goes against the organization’s values. We denounce situations like these and we will collaborate with the investigation if necessary.”

    The allegations come at the same time as Hockey Canada tries to manage its own series of sexual misconduct scandals following the revelation of a May 2022 settlement regarding sexual assault allegations that took place in 2018.

    Source: Complex.com