Canada_national_bandy_team
The Canada national bandy team (French: Équipe nationale de bandy du Canada) refers to the bandy teams representing Canada. Presently only the national men's senior team competes. There is the men's national team and the women's national team. The teams are overseen by Canada Bandy[2] (previously the Manitoba Bandy Federation) which is a member of the Federation of International Bandy (FIB). This article deals chiefly with the national men's team. For the women's team please see Canada women's national bandy team.
Bandy was first introduced to Canada in the city of Winnipeg in 1986.[3] The initial organizations for bandy in Canada were called the "Bandy Federation of Manitoba" and "Canada Bandy Association/Federation". The men compete in the Bandy World Championship. Canada's national men's bandy team made their world debut at the 1991 Bandy World Championship.
While Canada is a country with a strong tradition in ice hockey and ringette, both sports are played on an ice rink and Canada does not have artificial ice rinks large enough to qualify as regulation-sized bandy fields. As a result, Canada's national men's team practices at home on ice hockey rinks or other substitute surfaces.[4] In the past, the Canadian women's bandy team practiced on a frozen water hazard on a Winnipeg golf course. Team Canada occasionally goes to the United States to practice in areas where full-sized bandy fields exist.[5]
The Canadian team also continues to play in the annual Can-Am Bandy Cup.[6]