Ultimate Olympic rivalry: Canada vs. U.S. for women’s hockey gold
Canada and the U.S. are the only teams to ever win gold
⭐️HERE’S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW⭐️
- Women’s hockey has been in the Olympics since 1998.
- Canada and the U.S. are the only two teams to have ever won the gold medal.
- That’s likely to be the case again this year.
- Keep reading for more on this historic rivalry. ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️
Consistency is hard to find when it comes to the Olympics.
Since they only happen every four years, athletes change and things rarely stay the same.
One thing that has been consistent in the Winter Olympics is the rivalry between the only two teams to have won gold in women’s hockey.
It’s been Canada or the United States every single time since the sport was introduced at the Olympics in 1998.
This makes it one of the biggest rivalries to watch at the Winter Olympics this year in Beijing.
Of course, although we have seen these consistent winners in the past, anything can happen with COVID-19 and the rising Omicron cases.
It’s always been Canada or U.S. winning gold
Despite men’s hockey being in the Olympics for more than 100 years, women’s hockey only started being contested 24 years ago.
Four out of six times, Canada has left with the gold medal.
During the last Winter Olympics in 2018 in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Canada lost 3-2 in a shootout with the U.S. during the gold medal game.
This makes the U.S. women’s hockey team the defending gold medallists for this year’s Games.
The only other time the U.S. won gold was at the 1998 Nagano Olympics.
Sweden is the only other country to ever make it to the final, where they lost to Canada in 2006.
The rivalry between the U.S. and Canada is so intense that after previous Olympics, some people have criticized the sport for almost always being a two-team matchup, meaning other countries don’t stand a chance.
Still, the fans in Canada love it.
Rivalry beyond the Olympics
In November and December 2021, Canada and the U.S. took part in a nine-game pre-Olympic competition called the Rivalry Series, in several American and Canadian cities.
The series was cut short after six games due to rising COVID-19 concerns.
Canada won four out of the six games, including two in overtime.
Now the team is lying low.
With the Olympics less than a month away, the team is avoiding contact with other players to make sure no one gets COVID-19.
Everyone travelling to Beijing for the Olympic Games must test negative before they leave Canada.
“It's not worth the risk to play any games and to bring in any external people into our environment,” said Gina Kingsbury, Hockey Canada director of hockey operations.
Some of the players are frenemies
Although Canada and the U.S. are rivals on the ice, many of them are actually good friends.
That’s because they’ve played — or are still playing — on the same club or U.S. college teams, making them teammates.
A look ahead
A roster of 23 players was announced on Jan. 11 for Team Canada, of which 13 were on the silver medal team in 2018.
Canada plays against Switzerland in the preliminary round on Feb. 2, two days ahead of the opening ceremonies.
As of right now, the gold medal game is set for Feb. 17.
Fans in Canada will have to watch in the middle of the night on Feb. 16.
We will have to wait and see if history holds true and we see Canada and the U.S. in the gold medal game once again!
Have more questions? We'll do our best to look into it for you. Ask for permission from your parent or guardian and email us at cbckidsnews@cbc.ca.
With files from The Canadian Press
TOP IMAGE CREDIT: Michael Dwyer/The Associated Press, graphic design by Philip Street/CBC
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