Ice hockey fever in St. Jodok

Great passion for sport in the mountaineering village since the 1960s

In most Tyrolean towns, soccer reigns supreme in amateur sports - but not in the mountaineering village of St. Jodok, where ice hockey fever has been rampant since the 1960s.

In the winter of 1966/1967, a few ice hockey enthusiasts took it into their heads to build an ice rink on the St. Jodok fairground. Here, both children and adults could skate and hobby ice hockey players could let off steam. In 1971, an ice hockey section was set up in the St. Jodok sports club and in 1987 a separate club was founded under the name EHC Raiba St. Jodok.

What began with a few low wooden boards as a boundary has developed over the years into the largest natural ice arena in Tyrol.
Measuring 58 x 28 m, with plastic boards and Plexiglas surrounds, the St. Jodok ice rink now meets all the necessary requirements for league games. An ice resurfacing machine ensures perfect ice, and the ice hockey games are monitored and commented on in a separate announcer's booth. The finishing touches to the natural ice arena in St. Jodok were added in 2019 - separate changing rooms with showers.

The club also has its own field hockey bar, which is set up by club members every fall and taken down again at the end of the season in spring. Here, young and old skaters can fortify themselves with tea or mulled wine and small snacks. The popular ice disco takes place every year during the Christmas and semester break, where ice skaters can enjoy floodlit skating and music. During the ice hockey games, it is a meeting place for fans and players, where they can cheer, drool or even celebrate a defeat.

For many years, ice hockey matches were held in St. Jodok with friendly teams from North and South Tyrol. With the active involvement of EHC St. Jodok, a separate amateur league - the Hockey Cup Tirol - was founded in 2016. In this league, championship games are held from November to March in the basic round and play-offs. The highlights are of course always the games in front of the home crowd in the natural ice arena in St. Jodok.

What makes EHC St. Jodok so special is certainly the good work between the different generations, which seems to function so smoothly and almost as a matter of course. The club currently has 35 active members aged between 16 and 71. Three members from the founding days are still active in the club. 3 so-called "super oldies" aged over 70 even still take part in the weekly team training sessions. During friendly and championship matches, however, the "youngsters" are on the ice and are supervised and cheered on by the oldies.
Running an ice rink and maintaining an ice hockey team is very time-consuming. Many hundreds of hours of volunteer work are put in by members and supporters to keep the ice hockey fever going in St. Jodok. Starting with the construction of the boards and field hockey bar, the ongoing ice preparation in the early hours of the morning and, of course, the intensive training sessions and matches.

To ensure that the club can look forward to the coming years with confidence, the next generation must not be neglected. The members of the EHC take care of this themselves. For example, free ice skating and ice hockey training for children takes place in St. Jodok every week (Wednesday 17:00) (ice permitting).

Tip: The natural ice arena can be used free of charge by all ice skating enthusiasts - temperatures and weather permitting. The field hockey bar is open daily during the Christmas vacations and at weekends during the semester break, as well as on match days.

You can also find current information at: www.ehc-st.jodok.org or on the Facebook page EHC Raiba St.Jodok