The hockey players of the Latvian national team will have to get used to the ice field of an unusual size at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympic Games, however, national team defender Kristaps Zīle expressed his confidence in a conversation with Latvijas Radio that the team will be able to adapt quickly. Zile has settled in well in the Czech club “Bili Tygri” Liberec, where the assigned role could help him prepare even better for the Olympic tournament.
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) has accepted the Olympic tournament in Milan on a 60×26 meter field, which will be about a meter shorter and minimally wider than accepted by the National Hockey League (NHL), where the standard is 200×85 feet or 60.96×25.91 meters.
Ice hockey player Kristaps Zile about the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympic Games
Also in the Czech league, games are played on pitches of different sizes, so adapting to new conditions is not unusual for Ziel. A smaller pitch means a faster playing speed, which pleases Zīli, and he has no doubt that the Latvian national team will successfully adapt to the Olympic-sized pitch.
“With a couple of practices at that end [Milānā]and then you will get used to and understand them [laukuma] dimensions. The speed will also be higher as a result, which is cool. Then we’ll see how it goes,” Zile said.
Everything is completely satisfactory in the defender club in the Czech Republic, and the Zile team is also playing well. The hockey player emphasized that in the Czech league, the balance of strength of many teams is equal, so you have to concentrate on every game and you cannot hope to beat any competitor, so to speak, on one skate.
In certain game situations, Zīlem’s place in the team in the club is not guaranteed, but this does not worry the hockey player.
“Very cool, I’m happy where I am,” said Zile. “A good team with good defenders.”
Most of the time, “Bili Tygri” plays without Zile, but he emphasized that the main thing is to show a good performance in defense. Zile is also gaining more experience playing in the minority, which could be required for his contribution to the national team at the Olympic Games and the World Championship.
Zīle sees that the competition for a place in the national team is growing. As an example, Zile mentioned the young defender Alberts Schmidt, who was described as a very talented and good player. In addition
greater competition in the national team also pushes hockey players who have already become part of the national team forward.
The Olympic atmosphere in hockey can be felt a couple of months before the Milan Games, where the world’s strongest national teams will compete, Zīle admitted. He estimates that the pleasant excitement will increase as the Olympic tournament draws closer.
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CONTEXT:
The Milan-Cortina Winter Olympic Games will take place from February 6 to 22. For Latvian fans, one of the main Olympic events will be the men’s hockey tournament, where for the first time since 2014, NHL champions will also participate.
The Latvian national team will meet the USA (February 12), Germany (February 14) and Denmark (February 15) in the group stage. After the round-robin, all teams will enter the knockout tournament, but the three group winners and one best runner-up will go directly to the quarter-finals. The final match for the gold medals will take place on the final day of the Olympic Games.
The 2018 and 2022 Olympic ice hockey tournaments were held on NHL-sized arenas, although NHL club players did not participate.
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