Team selections for the Lucerne 2021 Winter Universiade, set to take place from 11-21 December 2021, have been announced by FISU for Curling and Ice Hockey events.
Secretary General and CEO of FISU, Eric Saintrond, expressed his delight about the announcement of the team selections. “It is fantastic to see announcement of the teams for the Winter Universiade moving forward despite being postponed last year,” said Saintrond. “This is great news not only for the Organising Committee and FISU, but for athletes and their delegations who had to put their training on hold in 2020 and are now able to compete”.
Looking ahead to the Ice Hockey events being held at the Sursee Ice Centre and Bossard Arena Zug, six women’s and ten men’s teams will compete at these venues respectively for a spot on the podium. Along with the usual men’s Ice Hockey contenders, this event will also see the debut of an Estonian team on the ice at the Winter Universiade.
President of the Local Organising Committee in Zug, Urs Scholl, expressed his excitement about the announcement of all teams participating. “I was surprised by the quality of the Ice Hockey matches at the Krasnoyarsk 2019 Winter Universiade,” said Scholl. “I’m excited to see how our home team will perform against the big nations like Russia and Canada in Lucerne. The silver medallists from the Winter Universiade, Slovakia, are also sure to display some exhilarating play”.
Meanwhile, the medals for Curling teams will be decided in Engelberg, where the Netherlands will also make their Winter Universiade debut in the men’s curling tournament. Competition Manager, Christine Urech, spoke about the calibre of Curling athletes who participated at previous Winter Universiades and have also participated at other high-level competitions. “The level of competition has always been very high,” said Urech. “Many players who have taken part, have also been competing at the World and European Championships and the World Cup”.
The Swiss delegation has also produced some promising talent in the past, including Ramon Zenhäusern (alpine skier) and Patrizia Kummer (alpine snowboarder)—two medallists from previous Winter Universiades. President of Swiss University Sports estimates that the Swiss delegation will bring 120 athletes and approximately 60 support staff—a record high for the delegation at any Winter Universiade. Names and information about the rest of the competing athletes will be announced in November 2021.
The full list of teams for the Lucerne 2021 Winter Universiade is as below:
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