If you drive just over 15 kilometres south from Klagenfurt, you will discover the small town of Ferlach. Almost 7,500 sports-mad residents live here, and the town is particularly well known for its successful handball club in Austria’s top league. Austria’s southernmost town lies at the foot of the Karawanken mountains and looks back on a centuries-old tradition as a gunsmithing town. However, its latest source of pride is the ice hockey complex, the Ferlach Hockey Training Centre, consisting of two large and two small ice rinks. Since 2021, it has been possible to chase the puck here all year round. A café, modern changing rooms and a fitness room complete the facilities.
The ice hockey tournament will be held here as part of the United World Games. Teams from the ice hockey-mad province of Carinthia will compete against opponents from the USA, Canada, France, Italy and many more countries. The largest delegation in the entire tournament comes from Québec, Canada’s largest province in terms of area and the one with the largest Francophone population. With their language, culture and clubs, they represent a distinct national community within Canada. They also proudly represent their blue and white colours in Carinthia. ‘We will win the tournament, there is no other option,’ says one father confidently. Which one exactly? ‘Well, all of them,’ is the proud reply. In the under-10 age group, that was exactly right, but in the U12s they were beaten by the teams from Klagenfurt and finished third. The girls also finished third in the U16 age group. So the two fathers weren’t entirely wrong.
Blue and white are the colours that dominate many venues. At the ice rink in Ferlach, the red and white of EC KAC is also present. This is the Klagenfurt ice hockey club, Austria’s record champions. For the young players, it is a great experience to compete against teams from the motherland of ice hockey. Many eyes are on a calm and composed-looking man behind the boards. In his shorts, he looks like he belongs at the ice rink. In a way, that’s true: Kirk Furey is the head coach of EC KAC, but today he is attending the United World Games as a father.
His son Skyler plays for a Klagenfurt team and is very successful. “It’s great that the kids have the opportunity to play in such an international tournament right on their doorstep. The level is very mixed and generally very high. ‘ says Kirk Furey. ’The important thing is that they have fun playing ice hockey together. Winning or losing is not the main focus here, but of course everyone tries very hard. Father Furey also shows his coaching skills during the game, repeatedly giving instructions to his son and his team. Kirk Furey, who hails from Nova Scotia, Canada, joined the ‘Red Jackets’ as a player in 2007 and took over as head coach for the 2023/24 season. Skyler’s team is doing extremely well, reaching the final and losing by the narrowest of margins to another Klagenfurt team. Blue and white, i.e. Quebec, comes third in this category.
Skylers team also plays against a team from France in the group stage, specifically Valence Lynx. For the representatives from the city in the Rhone Valley, their participation this year is still a learning process. They put up a brave fight, but often cannot keep up with their opponents for the entire game. “Our children benefit from tournaments like this, even if the level is still a little too high for us at the moment. We plan to come back next year with many more teams; it’s an invaluable experience. “, says their coach Jeremy. The ice hockey tournament has already established itself as part of the United World Games, thanks in part to the new ice rinks in Ferlach. In Austria, ice that can be played on all year round has become a luxury. In Ferlach, athletes get their money’s worth, as they can cool off between games in the small river flowing nearby, giving them the best of both worlds.
Photo credits: Nagel | Wisthaler | World of Communication