JERUSALEM (JTA) — An Israeli ice hockey team of 10- to 13-year-olds, who mostly practice on roller skates, won the gold medal at a tournament in Canada.
The Bat Yam Club peewee ice skating team, made up of boys from Bat Yam, Rishon Lezion, Nes Ziona, Maalot and Kfar Saba in central Israel, went undefeated in five games to take the Division B title last month at the the Bernieres-Saint-Redempteur International Peewee Tournament in suburban Quebec City, the Canadian Jewish News reported.
The tournament included 96 teams from Canada, the United States, Finland, France, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Switzerland.
The 17 young Israelis, who were hosted by the local Jewish community, finished 5-0 in the tournament, including a 7-3 victory in the final over the Seigneurs Lotbiniere club of Quebec.
The closest ice skating rink to Bat Yam is the Canada Center in Metulla, a two-hour drive north; it is Israel’s only ice skating rink. The team practices mostly on roller skates and asphalt.
