I managed to get tickets to see sledge hockey during the Paralympics. They were only $20! Before these Olympics I hadn’t given much thought to the Paralympics games afterwards but this year, with it being in Vancouver, I was much more aware. Interestingly enough, today in the news were reports of many individuals becoming more open to those with disabilities, primarily as a result of Vancouver having the Paralympics games. I step in the right direction for sure.
I had wanted to go see the Canadians play, but the games were already sold out. No matter – we just tried to choose one where we felt the teams were evenly matched and boy were these guys evenly matched.
At the end of the first period Sweden had scored. The second period was uneventful. In the third period, the Norwegians managed to tie up the game with less than 2 minutes left in the game. The stadium exploded and the Norwegian team was so excited. The game went to a 5 minute sudden death OT, but not one scored. By this time the excitement in the stadium was so high. It was great. The crowds were going crazy. There was short break and then it went to shoot out, best of 3. Sweden scored their first 2 shots, but missed their third – it hit the cross bar. The Norwegians scored all three and took the game 2 – 1. It was definitely a good game.
After Norway tied the game
Making spectacular saves in OT
The whole time I was so enthralled by how the players played the game. There was one blade on the seat and I think one at their feet. They used the ends of their hockey sticks to move themselves forward and when the puck came their way, quickly pushed their hands down so they can use it like a regular hockey stick. Their movements are so fluid and controlled. It was amazing to watch. The game is much slower, but it was still really cool to watch.
The fans in the stands were great. Supportive when needed to be. I didn’t have a particular side that I was cheering for – all I wanted was an interesting game and I definitely got that! There were some pretty big differences in the game. As I mentioned before, everything is slower. The hockey net is much smaller that normal and I’m pretty sure the puck is smaller too. It seemed a lot more rubbery too as it kept bouncing. There were panels cut out of the boards that allowed the camera crew to film at eye level more or less. The “bench” at the side didn’t actually have benches, but were filled with ice as well (I wonder how far this ice went into the locker room). It was definitely an experience =)
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