Hockey night in Mongolia
On a frigid December morning, on a outdoor rink on the edge of town, the Ice Sharks come out to practice.
The team, mostly boys in their mid teens, lace up their skates and brave -30 C winds to take part in that most essential of Canadian sports. It’s a scene that gets replayed in every community across Canada throughout the winter. Except, these kids aren’t Canadian, and this hockey rink is about as far from Canada as it’s possible to go on Earth. The Ice Sharks play in Zuunmod, a town of 14,000 people located 40 kilometres south of Ulaanbaator, the capital of Mongolia.
Hockey is a relatively new sport in Mongolia. It was introduced to the country by the Russians in the 1960s, in the days of the Mongolian People’s Republic. When the communists were removed from power in 1990, Russian support of Mongolian hockey largely came to end. In recent years, interest in the sport has begun to grow, thanks to donations of equipment and coaching support from foreign visitors. Ryan van Geest, a former Grimsby native, is one of them. Van Geest and his family have lived in Mongolia for the last three years, where he works as a pilot for a Christian charity, the Mission Aviation Fellowship.
“In the summers, as a pilot I am very busy flying our Cessna Caravan for poor local people, missionaries, humanitarian organizations, tourists, medical emergencies and miners. In the winters, with the colder temperatures, we don’t have too many flights and so I have more time for hockey,” he said. Van Geest got involved with local hockey after meeting a Finnish missionary couple who were building a church in Zuunmod. They’d built an outdoor rink, and with the help of van Geest and another missionary pilot from Finland, they were able to gather about 20 hockey sticks.
“Juuso (the Finnish pilot) and I brought hockey sticks for some of the kids and we showed them how to play hockey. They picked it up very quickly and enjoyed it a lot,” said van Geest. About 15 kids came out for regular weekly practices. As the practices got more popular, the organizers faced some unique problems.
Most Mongolians live as herders, and even in the cities, more than a third of the population live in poverty.
Locals were stealing the wooden boards to burn as firewood. The “boards” in Zuunmood are now made of cement. Another challenge has been finding a supply of equipment. Consumer goods like hockey equipment have no local producers. According to van Geest, Russian equipment is pricey, and Chinese equipment cannot endure the harsh weather and rough and tumble play on a Mongolian rink. The kids must rely on donations or homemade equipment.
“Many of the kids make their own equipment, including goalie equipment, and hockey sticks out of metal and wood,” said van Geest, who says many teams made do with half blades and patched, splintered sticks.
In 2010, van Geest and others were able to acquire enough donated equipment from Canada and Finland to outfit a complete team. L.T. Sports in Grimsby donated enough jerseys for three teams, and “magic sticks” for sharpening skates. The Zuunmod Ice Sharks were born. Their practices and games are now organized by Mendee, a local pastor. The Ice Sharks entered their first tournament in 2010... and placed dead last. This did not dampen their enthusiasm for the sport.
“They had a lot of fun and learned lots. The tournament was about eight hours away by van and a great opportunity for the kids to learn more about hockey and get to know the other guys on their team better,” said van Geest. The Ice Sharks now practice four times a week to prepare for the next tournament. He believes that introducing hockey to the kids in this small city on the other side of the world has been a blessing to them, and to himself.
The team, mostly boys in their mid teens, lace up their skates and brave -30 C winds to take part in that most essential of Canadian sports. It’s a scene that gets replayed in every community across Canada throughout the winter. Except, these kids aren’t Canadian, and this hockey rink is about as far from Canada as it’s possible to go on Earth. The Ice Sharks play in Zuunmod, a town of 14,000 people located 40 kilometres south of Ulaanbaator, the capital of Mongolia.
Hockey is a relatively new sport in Mongolia. It was introduced to the country by the Russians in the 1960s, in the days of the Mongolian People’s Republic. When the communists were removed from power in 1990, Russian support of Mongolian hockey largely came to end. In recent years, interest in the sport has begun to grow, thanks to donations of equipment and coaching support from foreign visitors. Ryan van Geest, a former Grimsby native, is one of them. Van Geest and his family have lived in Mongolia for the last three years, where he works as a pilot for a Christian charity, the Mission Aviation Fellowship.
“In the summers, as a pilot I am very busy flying our Cessna Caravan for poor local people, missionaries, humanitarian organizations, tourists, medical emergencies and miners. In the winters, with the colder temperatures, we don’t have too many flights and so I have more time for hockey,” he said. Van Geest got involved with local hockey after meeting a Finnish missionary couple who were building a church in Zuunmod. They’d built an outdoor rink, and with the help of van Geest and another missionary pilot from Finland, they were able to gather about 20 hockey sticks.
“Juuso (the Finnish pilot) and I brought hockey sticks for some of the kids and we showed them how to play hockey. They picked it up very quickly and enjoyed it a lot,” said van Geest. About 15 kids came out for regular weekly practices. As the practices got more popular, the organizers faced some unique problems.
Most Mongolians live as herders, and even in the cities, more than a third of the population live in poverty.
Locals were stealing the wooden boards to burn as firewood. The “boards” in Zuunmood are now made of cement. Another challenge has been finding a supply of equipment. Consumer goods like hockey equipment have no local producers. According to van Geest, Russian equipment is pricey, and Chinese equipment cannot endure the harsh weather and rough and tumble play on a Mongolian rink. The kids must rely on donations or homemade equipment.
“Many of the kids make their own equipment, including goalie equipment, and hockey sticks out of metal and wood,” said van Geest, who says many teams made do with half blades and patched, splintered sticks.
In 2010, van Geest and others were able to acquire enough donated equipment from Canada and Finland to outfit a complete team. L.T. Sports in Grimsby donated enough jerseys for three teams, and “magic sticks” for sharpening skates. The Zuunmod Ice Sharks were born. Their practices and games are now organized by Mendee, a local pastor. The Ice Sharks entered their first tournament in 2010... and placed dead last. This did not dampen their enthusiasm for the sport.
“They had a lot of fun and learned lots. The tournament was about eight hours away by van and a great opportunity for the kids to learn more about hockey and get to know the other guys on their team better,” said van Geest. The Ice Sharks now practice four times a week to prepare for the next tournament. He believes that introducing hockey to the kids in this small city on the other side of the world has been a blessing to them, and to himself.
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