Czechia

	Czechia
Flag and abbrev.	CZE
Continent	Europe
Leader	Petr Pavel; (President)
Population	10,628,711 (2018)
Registered players	107,722
Percentage	1,01%
National team	Czech National Team
National federation	Český Svaz Ledního Hokeje
IIHF ranking	6th (-1)
Top league	Czech Extraliga
Current champion	HC Kometa Brno

Czechia (IPA: /ˈtʃɛkɪə/) (Czech: Česko, IPA: [ʧɛsko]) also known as the Czech Republic (IPA: /ˈtʃɛk riˈpʌblɨk/) (Czech: Česká republika) is a landlocked country in Central Europe and a member state of the European Union. The country has borders with Poland to the north, Germany to the northwest and west, Austria to the south, and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague (Czech: Praha), a major tourist destination.

Organisation[]

Leagues[]

Czech hockey scheme
Elite	Czech Tipsport Extraliga (14)
Second	Chance Liga (15)
Third	Czech 2.Liga Západ (20)								Czech 2.Liga Východ (16)
Fourth	Pražský přebor (Prague) (7)	Krajský přebor (Central Bohemia) (12)	Plzeňský přebor (Pilsen) (8)	Krajský přebor (Karlovy Vary and Ústí nad Labem) (6)	Krajský přebor 1. třída (Hradec Králové) (9)	Krajská liga (Pardubice) (8)	Krajský přebor (Liberec) (6)	Krajská liga (South Bohemia) (11)	Krajský přebor (Zlín, Vysočina and South Moravia) (10)	Krajská liga 1. třída (Moravian-Silesian) (6)
Fifth	N/A (0)	Krajská soutěž mužů (Central Bohemia) (11)	N/A (0)	N/A (0)	Krajský přebor 2. třída (Hradec Králové) (7)	N/A (0)	N/A (0)	N/A (0)	N/A (0)	Krajská liga 2. třída(Moravian-Silesian) (?)

History of hockey in Czechia[]

Ice hockey was first introduced in Prague in 1905. Three years later, the first hockey clubs were formed in Prague, and the national Hockey Union was created. The same year, Bohemia (later Czechoslovakia) joined the IIHF becoming the second member. When Bohemia became a part of Czechoslovakia after World War I, it was readmitted to the IIHF under its new name in 1920.

International[]

Czechia
Info		Rinks		Players		Referees	3,520
Population	10,628,711	Indoor	157	Total	107,722	Male	--
Capital	Prague	Outdoor	23	Male	82,003	Female	--
IIHF Since	November 15 1908			Junior	23,209
				Female	2,510

The Czech men's national ice hockey team is the national ice hockey team of the Czech Republic. It is one of the most successful national ice hockey teams in the world, currently ranked sixth by the IIHF, behind Finland. It is controlled by the Czech Ice Hockey Association. Czech U20, U18, Womens, and Womens U18 teams have also participated in the world championships.

The Czechs won the gold medal at the 1998 Winter Olympics and won three straight gold medals at the world championships from 1999 to 2001. In the next three years, the team did not get a medal at the world championships — not even home at the 2004 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships held in Prague and Ostrava, thus keeping the "world championship home ice curse" alive. But the following year, the Czechs won gold at the 2005 tournament, the only world championship where, due to the 2004–05 NHL lockout, all NHL players were available to participate.

At the 2006 Winter Olympics, the Czechs won a bronze medal, defeating Russia 3–0 (roster) in the bronze medal game. At the 2006 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships, the Czechs won silver, falling to Sweden in the final. The Czech Republic has 72,075 players officially enrolled in organized hockey (0.7% of its population). Czech Republic won the 2010 World Championships in Germany.

Notable players[]

Notable Czech players

Czechia

Flag and abbrev.	CZE
Continent	Europe
Leader	Petr Pavel (President)
Population	10,628,711 (2018)
Registered players	107,722
Percentage	1,01%
National team	Czech National Team
National federation	Český Svaz Ledního Hokeje
IIHF ranking	6th (-1)
Top league	Czech Extraliga
Current champion	HC Kometa Brno