Knights take Africa Cup pro division title in Swakop
Inline hockey
The seventh edition of the Inline Hockey Africa Cup closed in Swakopmund on Monday evening with the pro division final between the defending champions Brauhaus, Namibia’s top side, and the international PAMA Golden Knights.
The Knights secured the title at MTC The Dome, winning 6-3 after pulling away in the second half, to walk away with the Sonja Muller Cup and the NS$30 000 prize.
Tournament organiser and player Dave Hammond, who lined up for the Knights, said this year’s event marked a milestone.
“It’s year seven for us. Incredible event. It was our best one yet. Biggest one we’ve ever had. Forty-four teams. We had 15 different nationalities come here. All the way from 6-and-under all the way up to pro. It was absolutely amazing all weekend,” he said.
The Africa Cup, billed as the biggest annual inline hockey tournament on the continent, drew teams from Namibia’s four clubs – Coastal Pirates (Swakopmund), Badgers and Kamikaze (Windhoek) and Scorpions (Otjiwarongo) – alongside invited international professionals.
According to Hammond, such exposure is critical for local players.
“This is Namibia’s big international exposure and development. One of the big reasons why Namibians have been doing so well is that we bring in all these international pros to play against them. And you can see now, Namibia’s (senior men’s team is) third in the world.”
The Namibia senior men’s team under coach Nadia Schmidt and captain Christiaan Coetzee recently returned from The World Games in Chengdu, China, with a bronze medal – a result Hammond described as proof of the country’s progress in the sport.
“We played against nine of the national players here. They went toe-to-toe with us. The kids are getting there. Namibia’s still really young (in the sport). The future’s very bright,” he said.
Stephanie Giersch, PRO of the Namibia Ice and Inline Hockey Association, said the Africa Cup is more than just a competition.
“For the kids it’s about the experience. We bring in these top-level international players who get paid to play hockey full-time, and it shows our players that if they work hard, they can go overseas and play professionally,” she said.
Meanwhile, efforts are ongoing internationally to secure Olympic status for inline hockey.
NIIHA’s next national tournament is scheduled at DTS in Windhoek in two weeks’ time (4-7 September) – the 30-year celebration of Kamikaze Inline Hockey Club.
The Knights secured the title at MTC The Dome, winning 6-3 after pulling away in the second half, to walk away with the Sonja Muller Cup and the NS$30 000 prize.
Tournament organiser and player Dave Hammond, who lined up for the Knights, said this year’s event marked a milestone.
“It’s year seven for us. Incredible event. It was our best one yet. Biggest one we’ve ever had. Forty-four teams. We had 15 different nationalities come here. All the way from 6-and-under all the way up to pro. It was absolutely amazing all weekend,” he said.
The Africa Cup, billed as the biggest annual inline hockey tournament on the continent, drew teams from Namibia’s four clubs – Coastal Pirates (Swakopmund), Badgers and Kamikaze (Windhoek) and Scorpions (Otjiwarongo) – alongside invited international professionals.
According to Hammond, such exposure is critical for local players.
“This is Namibia’s big international exposure and development. One of the big reasons why Namibians have been doing so well is that we bring in all these international pros to play against them. And you can see now, Namibia’s (senior men’s team is) third in the world.”
The Namibia senior men’s team under coach Nadia Schmidt and captain Christiaan Coetzee recently returned from The World Games in Chengdu, China, with a bronze medal – a result Hammond described as proof of the country’s progress in the sport.
“We played against nine of the national players here. They went toe-to-toe with us. The kids are getting there. Namibia’s still really young (in the sport). The future’s very bright,” he said.
Stephanie Giersch, PRO of the Namibia Ice and Inline Hockey Association, said the Africa Cup is more than just a competition.
“For the kids it’s about the experience. We bring in these top-level international players who get paid to play hockey full-time, and it shows our players that if they work hard, they can go overseas and play professionally,” she said.
Meanwhile, efforts are ongoing internationally to secure Olympic status for inline hockey.
NIIHA’s next national tournament is scheduled at DTS in Windhoek in two weeks’ time (4-7 September) – the 30-year celebration of Kamikaze Inline Hockey Club.
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