‘Girls getting involved’: Hockey programs see spike in enrollment after Olympics

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – It’s likely many young girls around Canada who watched the women’s hockey team clinch silver in Pyeongchang this week are feeling inspired to take to the ice.

That’s according to the head of a local hockey association who says there has consistently been a bump in registration numbers following Winter Games in the past.

“It feels great [to see more girls getting into hockey]. It’s not just a boy’s sport, this is definitely a sport for women and for girls,” James Nedila, president of the Vancouver Girls Ice Hockey Association says. ” And seeing the national team do so well, and so consistently well for so long, and have a great rivalry with the US — it can’t help but get you excited and want to get involved and do more.”

He says interest was most noticeable after the 2010 games here in Vancouver, but adds there was also an increase following the Sochi Olympics four years later.

“They did a great job and it was a great game to watch,” Nedila explains. “The little girls watching that kind of game can only get inspired and want to get involved and want to say, ‘well maybe I can do that, maybe I can go out and play.'”

Nedila — who is also Vice President of the Vancouver Minor Hockey Association — says there are many low-commitment events for beginners looking to get involved in hockey.

Through programs like First Shift, Nedila says people who are “brand-new to hockey” can sign up, pay a small fee, get a full set of equipment, and enroll in a program aimed at those with little experience. “And they teach you everything about how to get ready for a game, how to get on to the ice, what you do on the ice, how to get your skating going. It’s a great program.”

There’s also a free “try-hockey” event on March 17th at Killarney Arena. “That one, we provide all the equipment, everything. Helpers on and off the ice to get everybody ready, all the equipment you’d need, including the skates for the day, and we get you involved and get you out there with our players and our coaches.”

Nedila says both programs have been very successful in getting young girls involved in the sport.

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