Our mission
The Russian Ice Hockey Federation (RIHF) is an All-Russian Public Organisation which was created to develop and popularise ice hockey in Russia, in order to increase its role as to influence a healthy lifestyle onto the country's citizens.
The RIHF is a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and represents the interests of Russian ice hockey in international hockey organisations.
The Russian Ice Hockey Federation organises and holds:
- Championships, cups, tournaments and other official sports competitions;
- International hockey tournaments on the territory of the Russian Federation;
- Modernizes the system of training sportsmen of the highest level;
- Organises participation of national and club teams in international tournaments;
- Develops the cooperation between national federations and hockey leagues;
- Organises activities aimed to development and coordinate professional, amateur and youth hockey and provides help to veterans.
The RIHF carries out its activity on the territory of 67 Russian Federation regions.
Ice hockey competitions on the territory of our country are held under the auspices of the RIHF. They include the Russian championship, the VHL, the Russian championship among womens teams, Russian championships in the first and second leagues and Russian championships with regional senior and youth teams.
According to the Russian Federation's Federal Law about physical culture and sport (Art. 8), all the rights for the holding of official Russian championships belong to the Russian Ice Hockey Federation.
The RIHF also deals with all Russian national ice hockey teams:
- Senior men;
- Men's under 20's;
- Junior (U18);
- Junior (U16);
- Senior women's;
- Women's under 18's.
The men's national team have become world champions on a number of occasions, with the most recent triumph coming in 2014. The Soviet national team, as well as the Unified Team in 1992, have taken Olympic gold medals. Indeed all of Russia's teams are successful on the international stage, and the junior national team have won lots of medals and trophies at their World Championship. On the women's side, the main team took World Championship bronze twice, and the junior team have also earned medals at that level.
In the Russian Ice Hockey Federation, the main aims are the organisation of competitions on the Russian Federation's territory. Plenty of ice hockey lovers in the country have had the pleasure of enjoying Olympic Games, World Championships and Euro Hockey Tour matches with their own eyes, and these games don't only take place in Moscow. Competitions are spread all around the country, and they have always been held at the highest level.
The RIHF develops the training processes for sportsmen of the highest level, and provides fantastic facilities for players of all ages. Also, the federation is responsible for the selection of coaches for national teams.
With the aim of organising certain regions in the Russian Federation, the RIHF set up these inter-regional coordination centres:
- Moscow;
- Povolzhe;
- North-Western Region;
- Ural—Western Siberia
- Ural — Western Siberia;
- Siberia — Far East Region;
- Central Region;
- South.
The RIHF pays special attention to the formation, development and coordination of professional, amateur and youth ice hockey in the country. This includes methodological assistance to regional subdivisions, improving ice hockey centres, clubs, teams and youth schools.
During recent years, the federation has been working on the creation and conditioning of specialised sports facilities. Along with that, there has been a focus on the development of clubs, and the construction of new ice hockey arenas. Several have been opened in many different Russian cities, and more are planned.
In our country, ice hockey is immensely popular with millions of people. Russian ice hockey players and coaches try to live up to this with their efforts to achieve great things on the sporting stage.