The U18 WC for women was planned to be played in Linköping and Mjölby on 5–12 January 2021. Today it is clear that the championship will be canceled due to the corona pandemic.
"Sad message to get"
The decision was made at the IIHF's meeting which took place on Tuesday.
- It is of course a sad message to receive.
We, together with the organizing cities Linköping and Mjölby and the Östergötland Ice Hockey Association, have been looking forward to arranging this championship at home.
The U18 World Cup is an important part of further strengthening and building Swedish girls' and women's hockey.
With that said, we also have a great understanding of the decision based on the times we are currently living in, says Olof Östblom, Competition Manager at the Swedish Ice Hockey Association
As previously communicated, SVT would have produced and broadcast all of Sweden's matches and the final of the championship.
- We had come a long way with the planning of the largest TV investment ever at a U18 World Cup, so it feels sad not to be able to implement this in January.
But we hope that Sweden will have the opportunity to host the championship 2022 instead and then we at SVT will be in place with the same commitment and drive again, says SVT's sports director Åsa Edlund Jönsson.
Arranging 21/22 instead?
Sweden will probably have a new opportunity to host the U18 World Cup next year.
- Due to the championship being canceled, it is likely that we will be asked to arrange the championship in the 2021/2022 season.
If we get the question and the offer, we will have to evaluate the possibility of arranging the championship, which then falls during the same period as the U20 WC in Gothenburg.
We are basically positive about arranging the championship, but as I said, we have to wait for such an issue from the international federation, says Olof Östblom.