Field Hockey Canada (FHC) is the
national sports organization responsible for the development and growth of
field hockey
Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...
in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. In collaboration with provincial and club members, FHC provides programs and resources to support the field hockey community from the pitch to the podium.
Prior to 1991, the Canadian men’s and women’s field hockey programs were operating independently as separate national entities. The creation of Field Hockey Canada was the result of transitioning and uniting both programs under one umbrella.
National Teams include
Senior Men,
Senior Women, Junior Men and Junior Women.
Approximately 18,000
Canadians
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
play field hockey, with 9,000 participating in high school field hockey programs.
Field hockey is currently played in more than 600 schools and 400 clubs across the country.
History
Field hockey arrived in Canada in the late 19th century due to the British Army which had been traveling throughout the
Commonwealth nations. Eventually both men's and women's programs emerged. The modern form of field hockey was first played in Canada in
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
.
Women
In 1896, the first recorded match in Canada was played by Vancouver girls, and the Vancouver Ladies Club was formed. The first women's organization in Canada was formed in Vancouver in 1927.
Men
Men were playing at the turn of the century in
Vancouver
Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...
and
Victoria, and a Vancouver League came into existence in 1902.
National Championships
In Canada, the national field hockey championships are called the FHC (Field Hockey Canada) National Championships. As of 2022 there are two separate divisions for the FHC National Championships:
* Under 18 National Championships
* Under 16 National Championships
See also
*
Field Hockey
Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...
*
Bando (sport)
*
Shinty
Shinty ( gd, camanachd, iomain) is a team game played with sticks and a ball. Shinty is now played mainly in the Scottish Highlands and amongst Highland migrants to the big cities of Scotland, but it was formerly more widespread in Scotland, an ...
*
Hurling
Hurling ( ga, iománaíocht, ') is an outdoor team game of ancient Gaelic Irish origin, played by men. One of Ireland's native Gaelic games, it shares a number of features with Gaelic football, such as the field and goals, the number of p ...
*
Camogie
Camogie ( ; ga, camógaíocht ) is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and worldwide, largely among Irish communities.
A variant of the game of hurling (which is played by men onl ...
References
External links
Field Hockey Canadaofficial site
{{Sports governing bodies of Canada
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
Sports governing bodies in Canada
Field hockey in Canada