Ice hockey at the Olympic Games

Ice hockey has been played at the Olympic Games since 1920. The men's tournament began at the 1920 Summer Olympics and moved to the Winter Olympic Games in 1924. The women's tournament started much later, in 1998. Over the years, the rules for who could play have changed. At first, only amateur athletes could compete, but later, professional players were allowed to join.

The way the tournaments are played has also changed. Early on, teams played a series of games, and the top teams would then compete for medals. Later, a playoff system was introduced, where teams face off in a series of matches to decide the winners. Today, all teams play several games before the top teams move on to the knockout rounds.

Many countries have won Olympic ice hockey gold medals. Canada was very successful in the early years, and later, the Soviet Union became a strong team. The United States had famous victories, including a surprising win over the Soviet Union known as the "Miracle on Ice". In the women's tournament, Canada has been the most successful, winning many gold medals, while the United States has also won several.

Inception as an Olympic sport

The first Olympic ice hockey tournament happened at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium. At that time, ice hockey was a new sport for countries to play together. The group that helps control ice hockey rules, called the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), started in 1908. In 1914, leaders decided ice hockey could be part of the Olympics if the city wanted it. In early 1920, three months before the Olympics began, they chose to include ice hockey. Five European countries planned to play, and the ice stadium in Antwerp would host ice hockey and figure skating.

The first Winter Olympics took place in 1924 in Chamonix, France. That’s when ice hockey and figure skating became regular parts of the Winter Olympics. The Winter Olympics happen on snow or ice, unlike the Summer Olympics. At first, Winter and Summer Olympics happened in the same year, but later they were held every other year.

History of events

Men's tournament

1920 Summer Olympics

The men's ice hockey tournament at the 1920 Summer Olympics was organized by a committee that included future LIHG president Paul Loicq. The tournament used the Bergvall System, which had three rounds. The first round was an elimination tournament to determine the gold medal winner. The second round included teams defeated by the gold medal winner, and its winner received the silver medal. The final round was for teams that lost to the gold or silver medal winners, and its winner got the bronze medal.

The tournament took place from April 23 to 29, with seven teams: Canada, Czechoslovakia, the United States, Switzerland, Sweden, France, and Belgium. Canada sent the Allan Cup-winning Winnipeg Falcons. The Swedish team mostly consisted of bandy players who had just started playing hockey for this tournament. Canadian team manager W. A. Hewitt refereed the first game, an 8–0 win by Sweden against Belgium.

Canada won all three of its games in the first round and the gold medal, defeating Sweden in the final and outscoring opponents 27–1. The United States and Czechoslovakia won the silver and bronze medals, respectively. The Bergvall System was criticized, especially in Sweden, because the Swedish team had to play six games while the bronze medal-winning Czechoslovak team only played three. Erik Bergvall, the system's creator, said it was used incorrectly. Because of these criticisms, the Bergvall System was not used again for ice hockey.

1924–1936

In 1924, the tournament used a round-robin format with a preliminary round and a medal round. Medals were awarded based on win–loss records in the medal round. This format continued until 1988, though the number of teams and games varied slightly. The Toronto Granites, representing Canada, became one of the most dominant hockey teams in Olympic history, outscoring opponents 110–3, led by Harry Watson, who scored 36 goals. The United States won silver and Great Britain won bronze. Watson's 36 goals remain the tournament record for career goals.

Eleven teams participated in the 1928 Winter Olympics in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The defending champion Canadian team received a bye to the medal round and won all its games by a combined score of 38–0. The Swedish and Swiss teams won their first medals—silver and bronze respectively—and a German team participated for the first time, finishing ninth. At the 1932 Winter Olympics, Canada, represented by the Winnipeg Hockey Club, won gold in a tournament with four teams playing each other twice. Germany won bronze, the nation's first medal in the sport.

Two days before the 1936 Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany, Canadian officials protested that two players on the British team had played in Canada but transferred without permission to play for clubs in the English National League. The IIHF agreed with Canada, but Great Britain threatened to withdraw if the two were barred. To avoid conflict, Canada withdrew the protest shortly before the Games began. The tournament had four groups and fifteen teams. Great Britain became the first non-Canadian team to win gold; Canada won silver and the United States bronze.

Challenges to the definition of amateur

The Canadian Amateur Hockey Association revised its definition of amateur and broke away from the Amateur Athletic Union of Canada in 1936. Tommy Lockhart founded the Amateur Hockey Association of the United States in 1937 after disagreements with the Amateur Athletic Union of the United States. The CAHA and the AHAUS joined to form the International Ice Hockey Association in 1940. Its president W. G. Hardy sought acceptance by the International Olympic Committee on terms acceptable to the CAHA. CAHA president George Dudley later threatened to withdraw Canada from the Olympics over the definition of amateur. An IOC decision on the matter was postponed when the 1940 and 1944 Winter Olympics were cancelled due to World War II. In 1947, ice hockey's world governing body merged with the International Ice Hockey Association, was renamed to the International Ice Hockey Federation, and recognized the AHAUS as the governing body of hockey in the United States.

1948–1952

The IIHF considered whether to have an ice hockey tournament at the 1948 Winter Olympics or host a separate Ice Hockey World Championships elsewhere in Switzerland in 1948. Avery Brundage of the United States Olympic Committee campaigned against including the AHAUS in the upcoming Olympics. The LIHG passed a resolution that its teams would only play against teams approved by the CAHA and the AHAUS. Brundage threatened that the USOC would boycott the Olympics if the AHAUS team was recognized. After negotiations, the AHAUS team was allowed to play, but the IOC declared those games would not count in the standings.

Both Czechoslovakia and Canada won seven games and tied when they played each other. The gold medal winner was determined by goal difference: Canada won gold because it had an average of 13.8 goals per game compared to Czechoslovakia's average of 4.3. Switzerland won the bronze medal, and the AHAUS team finished fourth. Discussions began in 1950 about whether ice hockey would be included in the 1952 Winter Olympics. After discussions, hockey was included, and Canada, represented by the Edmonton Mercurys, won gold for the second consecutive Games. The United States won silver and Sweden won bronze. A team from Finland competed for the first time.

1956–1976

The Soviet Union competed in its first World Championship in 1954, defeating Canada and winning the gold medal. At the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, the Soviet team went undefeated and won its first gold medal. Canada, represented by the Kitchener-Waterloo Dutchmen, lost to the Soviets and the United States in the medal round, winning the bronze. The 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, United States, saw the first and only team from Australia compete. Canada, the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia and Sweden were the top four teams but were all defeated by the American team, which won all seven games to its first Olympic gold medal. Canada won silver and the Soviet Union won bronze.

At the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria, the Soviet team won all seven of its games, earning the gold medal. Canada finished with five wins and two losses, tying for second place with Sweden and Czechoslovakia. The tie-breaking procedure was changed during the tournament, causing Canada to finish fourth. The Soviet Union won its third gold medal with a 7–1 record in the 1968 Grenoble Olympics. Czechoslovakia and Canada won silver and bronze, respectively. This was the last time the Olympics were counted as the World Championships. In 1970, Canada withdrew from international ice hockey, protesting the use of full-time "amateurs" by the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia. The Soviet team won gold at the 1972 and 1976 Games. The United States finished last at the 1971 World Championships and qualified for the 1972 Olympics, winning silver. Czechoslovakia won bronze in 1972. In 1976, Czechoslovakia won silver and West Germany won bronze.

1980: "Miracle on Ice"

The Winter Olympics returned to Lake Placid, New York in 1980. Twelve teams participated, including Canada for the first time since 1968. The Soviet Union had won the gold medal in five of the six previous Winter Olympic Games and were favorites to win again. The United States' team—led by head coach Herb Brooks—consisted of amateur players with mostly college experience. In the group stage, both teams were unbeaten. In the medal round, the U.S. team defeated the Soviet Union 4–3, then clinched the gold medal by defeating Finland in the final. The Soviet Union took silver.

The victory became one of the most iconic moments of the Winter Olympic Games and in U.S. sports.

1984–1994

At the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, the Soviet Union won its sixth gold medal. Czechoslovakia and Sweden won silver and bronze, respectively. The 1988 Winter Olympics were held in Calgary, Canada, where the Soviet team captured its seventh and final gold medal. Finland upset the Soviets 2–1 and won silver. The IIHF introduced a playoff system in 1990, used at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France.

Before 1989, players from the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia and other nations behind the Iron Curtain were not allowed to leave and play in the National Hockey League. The Soviet Union dissolved in December 1991. Nine former Soviet states joined the IIHF, including Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Latvia and Ukraine. At the 1992 Olympics, Russia and other former Soviet states competed as the Unified Team. In the final, the Unified Team defeated Canada to win gold while Czechoslovakia won bronze.

Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in January 1993. Both nations competed in the 1994 Winter Olympics, as did Russia. Slovakia lost their medal round quarter-final to Russia in overtime. In the semi-finals, Sweden defeated Russia and Canada beat Finland, with Canada winning the bronze medal game. In the gold medal game between Sweden and Canada, both teams finished regulation and overtime tied at 2–2. In the resulting shootout, Peter Forsberg of Sweden scored a famous goal, and Sweden won its first gold medal.

1998–2014

In 1995, an agreement was reached to release NHL players to participate in the Olympics. The format of the 1998 tournament was adjusted for the NHL's schedule. Canada was upset in the semi-final by the Czech Republic and lost the bronze medal game to Finland. Led by goaltender Dominik Hašek, the Czech team defeated Russia in the final, winning its first gold medal.

The next tournament was in Salt Lake City, United States. Finland's Raimo Helminen became the first ice hockey player to compete in six tournaments. Belarus defeated Sweden in the quarter-finals. Canada rebounded to defeat the American team in the gold medal game, winning their first gold in 50 years.

The tournament format was adjusted again for the 2006 Winter Olympics. Sweden defeated Finland to win gold and the Czech Republic won bronze.

The 2010 Winter Olympics were held in Vancouver, Canada. Teemu Selänne of Finland broke the record for career points. Slovakia made the final four for the first time but lost the bronze medal game to Finland. In the gold medal game, Canada and the United States tied 2–2 in regulation, and Sidney Crosby scored the winning goal in overtime to give Canada its eighth gold medal.

The 2014 Winter Olympics were held in Sochi, Russia. Slovenia participated for the first time. Russia lost in the quarterfinals to Finland. The United States lost to Canada and then to Finland in the bronze medal game. Canada defeated Sweden to win its ninth Olympic gold medal.

2018–2022

The ice hockey tournament at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang was held without active NHL players for the first time since 1994. Russia was the favorite to win gold. Due to a doping scandal, the IOC suspended the Russian Olympic Committee, but allowed Russian athletes to compete under the Olympic flag. In the final, the Russian team defeated Germany 4–3 in overtime to win gold. Canada won bronze over the Czech Republic.

NHL players were scheduled to participate at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, but the league and the NHL Players' Association pulled out due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Finland won their first-ever gold medal after defeating the Russian Olympic Committee 2–1 in the final. Slovakia defeated Sweden 4–0 in the bronze medal game for their first-ever medal. For the first time, the Czech Republic did not qualify for the quarter-finals.

Women's tournament

Addition to the programme

At the 99th IOC Session in July 1992, the IOC approved women's hockey as an Olympic event beginning with the 1998 Winter Olympics. Women's ice hockey had not been in the programme when Nagano, Japan won the right to host the Olympics in June 1991. The Nagano Winter Olympic Organizing Committee was initially hesitant due to additional costs and concerns about competitiveness. In November 1992, an agreement was reached to include a women's ice hockey tournament, limited to six teams with no additional facilities built. The Canadian Amateur Hockey Association agreed to help build and train the Japanese team.

1998–2006

Before 1998, women's hockey had been dominated by Canada. However, by 1997, the American team had improved and was evenly matched with Canada. The 1998 Olympic tournament included teams from Finland, Sweden, China and host Japan. Canada and the United States dominated the round-robin portion. In their head-to-head match, the United States overcame a 4–1 deficit to win 7–4. The two teams met in the final, which the United States won 3–1. Finland defeated China 4–1 to win bronze.

For the 2002 Winter Olympics, the number of teams increased to eight with Russia, Germany and Kazakhstan qualifying for the first time. The Canadian and American teams went undefeated in the first round and semi-finals, setting up a gold medal rematch that Canada won 3–2. The Swedish team won bronze over Finland 2–1.

In 2006, Sweden defeated the US in a shootout in the semi-finals. In the medal games, Canada defeated Sweden 4–1 to claim gold, while the Americans beat Finland 4–0 to win bronze.

2010 and debate on removal from the Olympics

In 2010, eight teams participated, including Slovakia for the first time. In the gold medal game, Canada defeated the United States 2–0 to win their third consecutive gold. Finland won bronze over Sweden 3–2 in overtime, their first since 1998.

The future of international women's ice hockey was discussed at the World Hockey Summit in 2010. International Olympic Committee president Jacques Rogge raised concerns about the competitive balance, dominated by Canada and the United States. Team Canada captain Hayley Wickenheiser explained the talent gap was due to professional leagues and year-round training facilities in North America. She stressed the need for women to have their own professional league for the benefit of international hockey.

2014–2022

At the 2014 Winter Olympics, Canada defeated the United States 3–2 in overtime, as Marie-Philip Poulin scored at 8:10 of overtime to win their fourth consecutive gold. Finland defeated Switzerland 4–0 for bronze.

In 2018, the United States defeated Canada for the gold medal in a shootout, winning 3–2. This marked the first time in 20 years that the United States won gold in women's hockey.

The 2022 edition was played with ten teams for the first time. Canada won their fifth gold medal, defeating the United States 3–2. Finland defeated Switzerland 4–0 for bronze.

Rules

Qualification

Since 1976, 12 teams have played in the men's ice hockey tournament, except in 1998 and 2002 when 14 teams played. The number of teams has changed over time. After the NHL allowed its players to compete at the 1998 Winter Olympics, some top teams got automatic spots in the finals. The number of teams was increased to 14 for a round-robin tournament. The top two teams from this joined the top teams in the finals. A similar system was used in 2002. Later, the number of teams was reduced to 12 so teams would play fewer games. Qualification for the men's tournament at the 2010 Winter Olympics was based on the 2008 IIHF World Ranking. Twelve spots were available. The top nine teams in the World Ranking after the 2008 Men's World Ice Hockey Championships got automatic spots. Teams ranked 19th through 30th played in a qualification round in November 2008. The top three teams from that round moved to the second qualification round, joining teams ranked 10th through 18th. The top three teams from this round advanced to the Olympic tournament.

The women's tournament uses a similar qualification format. The top six teams in the IIHF Women's World Ranking after the 2008 Women's World Ice Hockey Championships got automatic spots. Teams ranked 13th and below were split into two groups for a qualification round in September 2008. The two group winners moved to the second qualification round, where teams ranked seventh through twelfth joined them.

Players

Eligibility

The IIHF has rules for players to be eligible for international tournaments:

• Each player must be under the supervision of an IIHF member national group.
• Each player must be a citizen of the country they represent.

If a player who has never played in an IIHF competition changes their citizenship, they must play in national competitions in their new country for at least two years and have an international transfer card (ITC). If a player who has played in an IIHF tournament wants to change their national team, they must play in their new country for four years. A player can only do this once. The original Olympic rules stated that an athlete who had already played for one nation could not later change nations.

Use of professional players

The NHL decided not to allow all players to take part in 1988, 1992, 1994, 2018, and 2022 because the Winter Olympics usually happen during the league's regular season. For players to take part, the NHL would have needed to stop its games.

In 1992, NBA players took part in the 1992 Summer Olympics. NHL leader Gary Bettman hoped that NHL players would get the same attention. In 1995, an agreement was made to allow NHL players to take part in the Olympics starting with the 1998 Games in Nagano, Japan. The deal was announced by the NHL on 2 October 1995. Bettman said: "We're doing this to grow the game of hockey."

The 2004–05 NHL season was stopped and later cancelled because of a disagreement between the league and its players. In 2005, Bettman said he was unsure about allowing league games to stop for the Olympics. The disagreement was solved later and the new agreement allowed league participation in the 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics. Some NHL team leaders were worried about injuries or tiredness. Bettman said that several changes were being talked about to make the tournament easier for everyone.

It was first thought that for NHL participation in the 2014 Winter Olympics, a new agreement would need to be made. In 2013, the NHL and the players' group agreed on a new agreement. However, the decision on NHL participation at the Olympics was later announced in 2013. As part of the deal, the NHL would stop for 17 days during the Olympics and send 13 officials to help with the Games. Bettman said the Olympic stop was hard on players, schedules, and fans, and that the benefits were greater when the Olympics were in North America than in faraway places. According to Bettman, most NHL team leaders agreed with him, feeling the league did not get enough benefits to justify stopping and the risk of player injuries. IIHF leader René Fasel said he would work hard to ensure NHL players could take part and promised to "work day and night to have NHL players in Sochi".

In 2016, the Olympic group said it would no longer pay for NHL players' stays, travel, or insurance in the Olympics, prompting the IIHF to ask national ice hockey groups and Olympic groups for help covering costs.

On 3 April 2017, the NHL said it would not take part in the 2018 Winter Olympics. This decision was made mainly because of financial disagreements with the Olympic group over who would cover the costs of travel, insurance, and stays. In their statement, the NHL said it had been open to hearing from the Olympic group, the IIHF, and the players' group on ways to make Olympic participation more appealing to team leaders, but no real talks on that matter had happened. Although the leader of the IIHF René Fasel tried to convince the NHL to change its decision, in September he said there was no chance for NHL players to take part in the Pyeongchang Olympic tournament. After skipping the 2018 Olympics, the league planned to return for the 2022 Games in Beijing but pulled out at the last minute because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The league then officially returned for the 2026 and 2030 Games.

Game rules

At the first tournament in 1920, there were many differences from the modern game: games were played outside on natural ice, passing the puck forward was not allowed, the rink was 56 m × 18 m (165 ft × 58.5 ft) and two 20-minute periods were played. Each team had seven players on the ice, the extra position being the rover. After the tournament, the IIHF met and decided to use Canadian rules—six players per side and three periods of play.

The tournaments follow the rules used by the IIHF. At the 1969 IIHF meeting, leaders voted to allow body-checking in all three zones of a rink similar to the NHL; it's not allowed for women. Before that, body-checking was only allowed in the defending zone in international hockey. Several other rule changes were made in the early 1970s: players were required to wear helmets starting in 1970, and goalie masks became required in 1972. In 1992, the IIHF switched to using a playoff system to decide medal winners and said that tied games in the medal round would be decided in a shootout. In 1998, the IIHF passed a rule that allowed two-line passes. Before then, the neutral zone trap had slowed the game down and reduced scoring.

The current IIHF rules are a little different from the rules used in the NHL. One difference between NHL and IIHF rules is rink size: the NHL rink is narrower, measuring 61 m × 26 m (200 ft × 85 ft), instead of the international size of 61 m × 30.5 m (200 ft × 100 ft). The larger international size allows for a faster and less physical style of play. Another rule difference between the NHL and the IIHF rules concerns how icing is called. In the NHL, a linesman stops play due to icing if a defending player (other than the goalie) is not ahead of an attacking player in the race to the end-zone faceoff dots in his defending zone, unlike the IIHF rules in which play stops the moment the puck crosses the goal line. The NHL and IIHF also differ in penalty rules. The NHL calls five-minute major penalties for more dangerous rule breaks, such as fighting, in addition to the minor and double minor penalties called in IIHF games. This is unlike the IIHF rule, where players who fight risk a game misconduct and major penalties. Starting with the 2005–06 season, the NHL added several new rules. Some were already used by the IIHF, such as the shootout and the two-line pass. Others were not taken up by the IIHF, such as rules requiring smaller goalie equipment and the addition of the goalie trapezoid to the rink. However, the IIHF did agree to follow the NHL's strict policy on blocking and required referees to call more hooking, holding, and interference penalties.

Each team can have between 15 and 20 skaters (forwards and defencemen) and two or three goalies, all of whom must be citizens of the nation they play for.

Results

Men

Summary

Medal table

Last updated after the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Alternate medal table

Unlike the IOC, the IIHF combines the records of predecessor and successor nations.

Participating nations

Key

Women

Summary

Medal table

Accurate as of the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Participating nations

Key

Overall medal table

Main article: List of Olympic medalists in ice hockey

Sources (after the 2026 Winter Olympics):
Accurate as of the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Alternate overall medal table

Unlike the IOC, the IIHF combines the records of predecessor and successor nations.
Accurate as of the 2026 Winter Olympics.