MINSK, 7 January (BelTA) – The UAE team claimed its first bronze at the Christmas International Amateur Ice Hockey Tournament for the Prize of the President of Belarus, beating Slovakia 4-3 at Chizhovka Arena on 7 January.
Slovakia won bronze in 2016.
It was the third time that team UAE took part in the Christmas ice hockey tournament in Minsk. In 2015 and 2016 the team of the United Arab Emirates failed to advance to the playoffs. The popularity of ice hockey in the UAE has been steadily increasing, however.
The winner of the 13th Christmas International Amateur Ice Hockey Tournament for the Prize of the President of Belarus will be named later on 7 January. The Belarus President’s team and Team Finland faced each other in the final in 2016 as well. Belarus won 2-1 then.