We continue to monitor the progress of all the participating countries of ADIHIC. At the Kazan Cup held in Russia in January 2023, one of the brightest teams was the Bahrain men’s national ice hockey team.

Competing in the Arab Club Ice Hockey Championship Bahrain reached the semi-finals of the tournament. It was held recently in Kuwait, featuring teams from eight countries across the region.

Firstly, placed in a tough preliminary group with regional heavyweights Algeria and Tunisia and hosts Kuwait, the Bahraini team surprised everyone when they defeated the mighty Algerians. By the way, it was their first ever win in an international clash at this level. Later, after losing to the Kuwaitis, Bahrain upset the highly-fancied Tunisians and finished second in their group behind the hosts.

In the semi-final against Lebanon, however, the team’s preparations were undone by injuries to two key players and the fact that the Lebanese players all had pro league experience. Note that the Lebanese national team became the winner of the tournament. Afterwards, Bahrain lost the third-place play-off to Oman – who had lost to Kuwait in the other semi-final.

It is worth noting that Bahrain currently has only one full-size ice rink. It is located in one of the shopping centers in the city of Manama. Nevertheless, hockey is really loved in this country.