Egypt Wins First Tournament Ice Hockey Game

For the first time in tournament action, Egypt, under the name the Egyptian Pharaohs, have won a hockey game, beating the Algiers Corsaires by a score of 8-7.

Egypt, who had played just two exhibition games prior (defeating Morocco 3-2 in Saint-Laurent, Quebec in Canada last year), had never played in international competition previously. The Arab Club Cup, a tournament involving African teams from Lebanon, Tunisia, Algeria and the host country, the United Arab Emirates, is the first of its kind after the event was reworked following the Arab Cup in 2008. Egypt had lost their three previous games beforehand, allowing 37 goals in that time span.

The win, however, did not come at an IIHF-run event, as the tournament features teams without an IIHF membership. Egypt is one of those teams, with hopes of building an official sized IIHF rink on the horizon. 

Sameh Ramadan, a member of the Egyptian Ice Hockey board, said in a 2017 interview that ice hockey started in Egypt in the early 2000's. Currently, the Egyptian club teams participate in the Egyptian Ramadan Cup, and the team is hoping to grow further with the future launch of the Egyptian Ice Hockey Federation.

Algiers is hoping to finish the tournament with a victory but will have to battle the third-place Carthage Eagles for a chance at a better placement on Saturday. The Abu Dhabi Storm and the Lebanese national team will meet for the gold medal game, with both teams dominating offensively throughout the tournament. 

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