ABOUT
Beijing International Ice Hockey

Peking Puck

The Coolest Game in the Capital

Ice Hockey is alive and well in Beijing, and has been played by expatriates in the capital for over 20 years. The club's history stretches back to the early 1970’s, where at the outdoor lake arena of the Soviet Union, Canadians and Soviets would battle for national prestige during the two months of ice. Today’s grizzled veterans of Beijing International and the Canadian Embassy recall the games and how in the heart of the Cold War, two opposing countries were brought together under the auspices of sport.

Today, Beijing International Ice Hockey is exactly what it claims to be, international. The breakdown of the team is remarkable, and despite language barriers, the puck is always forwarded, and the pass made to score the goal. Of the 50 players on the roster, 40 percent is Canadian content, with 10 percent American and 10 percent Russian, and the remainder of the team made up of Swedes, Fins, Czechs, a lone Swiss, a crazy Irish goaltender and brave Greek.

Weekly matches are played on Sunday mornings between 10 and 2pm, in the basement arena of Capital Gymnasium (West of the Beijing Zoo on Xizhirmen, across the street from Purple Bamboo Park) with the teams divided and mixed with the 15 or 20 local Chinese who have taken up the sport.

Beijing International is about fun and camaraderie, with plenty of parties and tours. Teammate DJ Benz is active in Beijing organizing raves and parties, and can often be found spinning disks at The Den, The John Bull Pub, Durty Nellie’s and the infamous Swissotel Tax Free Parties. Ray Plummer handles the organizing of the team and tournaments, with tours in recent years to Bangkok, Manila, Taiyuan, Hong Kong, Dubai, and the showcase tournament in Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia, outdoors at –30c playing the Mongolian Olympic Team. “Play Hard – Party Hard” describes the team aptly. The annual tours for the team are February to Mongolia, then May to Hong Kong, June to Manila, and October to Bangkok. There’s no better way to tour Asia than to do it playing hockey.

For the fastest blades in the East, there are moments of glory, such as when 5 players from Beijing International were invited to make a team with a shift of Russians to scrimmage against the Chinese Men’s National Team. The score after 60 minutes was 7-5 against the National Team.