Sledge hockey (sometimes called para ice hockey or sled hockey in American English) is an ice hockey modification for players with physical disabilities. Players are seated on sleds and use special hockey sticks with metal 'teeth' on the tips of their handles to navigate the ice. Invented in the early 1960s at a rehabilitation center in Stockholm, Sweden, and played under similar rules to standard ice hockey, players are seated on sleds and use special hockey sticks with metal 'teeth' on the tips of their handles to navigate the ice. An ice hockey rink is used in the games.
The Worldwide Paralympic Committee (IPC) functions as the sport's international sanctioning authority through its World Para Ice Hockey division. Since 1994, Paralympic ice hockey has been one of the most popular events at the Winter Paralympics.
The sledge was created in the 1960s by two Swedish men who wished to continue playing hockey despite their physical limitations. Two skate blades were mounted on a metal frame, allowing the puck to slide below. Two round poles with bike grips were added as sticks to complete the ensemble. Although the measurements and weight of the sleds used in the Paralympic Games are limited, the basic design of modern sleds is based on the original 1960s simple sleds for children. These sleds were then converted to hockey sleds.
Despite a lack of interest and awareness in the early years, competition amongst sledge hockey teams began in 1971, with five teams from Europe participating. In 1981, the United Kingdom formed its first sledge hockey team, which was quickly followed by Canada in 1982. The United States did not have its first ice sledge hockey squad until 1990. When Estonia and Japan formed teams in 1993, sled hockey continued to grow. In 1994, sledge hockey was introduced to the Winter Paralympics, and Sweden won the inaugural gold medal. Sledge hockey has been a mixed-gender event since your inception on Game
The International Paralympic Committee announced on November 30, 2016, that, in an effort to improve and unify the marketing of its self-sanctioned sports outside of the Paralympic Games, it would now refer to sledge hockey as para ice hockey, citing that the word 'sledge' has different meanings in different languages (with its sanctioning sub-division consequently renamed World Para Ice Hockey)
