The Ice Hockey World Championships are an annual international men's ice hockey tournament organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). First officially held at the 1920 Summer Olympics, it is the sport's highest profile annual international tournament. The IIHF was created in 1908 while the European Championships, the precursor to the World Championships, were first held in 1910. The tournament held at the 1920 Summer Olympics is recognized as the first Ice Hockey World Championship. From 1920 to 1968, the Olympic hockey tournament was also considered the World Championship for that year.
The Summit Series, Super Series, or Series of the Century, known at the time simply as the Canada–USSR Series, was an eight-game ice hockey series between the Soviet Union and Canada, held in September 1972. It was the first competition between the Soviet national team and a Canadian team represented by professional players of the National Hockey League (NHL), known as Team Canada. It was the first international ice hockey competition for Canada after they had withdrawn from such competitions in a dispute with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). The series was organized with the intention to create a true best-against-best competition in the sport of ice hockey. The Soviets had become the dominant team in international competitions, in which the Canadian professionals were ineligible to play. Canada had had a long history of dominance of the sport prior to the Soviets' rise.
The Canada men's national ice hockey team is the ice hockey team representing Canada internationally. The team is overseen by Hockey Canada, a member of the International Ice Hockey Federation. From 1920 until 1963, Canada's international representation was by senior amateur club teams. Canada's national men's team was founded in 1963 by Father David Bauer as a part of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association, playing out of the University of British Columbia. The nickname "Team Canada" was first used for the 1972 Summit Series and has been frequently used to refer to both the Canadian national men's and women's teams ever since.
The men's ice hockey tournament at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, United States, was the ninth Olympic Championship, also serving as the 27th World Championships and the 38th European Championships. The United States won its first Olympic gold medal and second World Championship. Canada, represented for the second time by the Kitchener-Waterloo Dutchmen, won the silver and Canada's ninth consecutive Olympic ice hockey medal. The Soviet Union won the bronze medal and its sixth European Championship. The tournament was held at the Blyth Arena, under the supervision of George Dudley on behalf of the International Ice Hockey Federation.
The Soviet national ice hockey team was the national men's ice hockey team of the Soviet Union. From 1954, the team won at least one medal each year at either the Ice Hockey World Championships or the Olympic hockey tournament.
The men's ice hockey tournament at the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, was the eighth Olympic Championship, also serving as the 23rd World Championships and the 34th European Championships. The tournament was held at the Olympic Ice Stadium and the Apollonio Stadium.
The men's ice hockey tournament at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria, was the tenth Olympic Championship, also serving as the 31st World Championships and the 42nd European Championships. The games were held at the Olympiahalle Innsbruck.
Ice hockey tournaments have been staged at the Olympic Games since 1920. The men's tournament was introduced at the 1920 Summer Olympics and was transferred permanently to the Winter Olympic Games program in 1924, in France. The women's tournament was first held at the 1998 Winter Olympics.
The 1953 Ice Hockey World Championships were the 20th World Championships and the 31st European Championships in ice hockey. The tournament took place between March 7 and March 15, 1953, in Basel and Zurich, Switzerland. Sweden won their first World Championship title and their seventh European Championship title.
The 1957 Ice Hockey World Championships were held between 24 February and 5 March 1957 at the Palace of Sports of the Central Lenin Stadium in Moscow, USSR.
The 1985 Ice Hockey World Championships took place in Prague, Czechoslovakia from 17 April to 3 May. Eight teams took part, with each team playing each other once. The four best teams then played each other once more with no results carrying over, and the other four teams played each other again to determine ranking and relegation. This was the 50th World Championships, and also the 61st European Championships of ice hockey. The home side, Czechoslovakia, became world champions for the 6th time, and the Soviet Union won their 23rd European title. For the European Championship, only games between European sides in the first round are included.
The 1976 Ice Hockey World Championships were the 43rd Ice Hockey World Championships and the 54th European Championships in ice hockey. The tournament took place in Poland from 8 to 25 April, and the games were played in Katowice. Eight teams took part in the main tournament, with each team first playing each other once. The four best teams then took part in a medal play off, and the teams placed 5–8 took part in a relegation play-off. The teams took the results from the first round through to the second round with them.
The Canadian men's national under-20 ice hockey team is the ice hockey team representing Canada internationally in under-20 competition. Their primary participation in this age group comes at the International Ice Hockey Federation's World Junior Championship, held annually every December and January. The team also participates in various exhibition matches and occasional exhibition series, such as the 2007 Super Series against their Russian counterparts, an eight-game exhibition series commemorating the 35th anniversary of the 1972 Summit Series.
The 14th Ice Hockey World Championships and 25th European Championship was the first after the Second World War. It was held from 15 to 23 February 1947 at Štvanice Stadium in Prague, Czechoslovakia. Eight teams participated, but the competition was notably missing the reigning world champion, Canada. The world champion was decided for the first time by round robin league play. Czechoslovakia won the world championship for the first time and the European championship for the seventh time. King Gustav V had sent a telegram of congratulations to the Swedish team after beating the Czechoslovaks, but they had barely finished celebrating when they were upset by the Austrians, costing them the gold medal.
The 1970 Ice Hockey World Championships was the 37th edition of the Ice Hockey World Championships. 21 nations participated in three different divisions or pools:
The 1967 Ice Hockey World Championships was the 34th edition of the Ice Hockey World Championships. The tournament was held in Vienna, Austria from March 18 to March 29, 1967. The Soviet Union won the tournament for the fifth straight year, Sweden won the silver medal, and Canada claimed the bronze medal.
The 1955 Ice Hockey World Championships was the 22nd edition of the Ice Hockey World Championships. The tournament was held in Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Krefeld and Cologne, West Germany from February 25 to March 6, 1955. A total of 14 nations participated in this World Championship, which was a new record for the postwar era. As a result, the teams were seeded with the strongest 9 teams placed in Pool A and the remaining 5 nations as well as the West German B team placed in Pool B.
The 1958 Ice Hockey World Championships were held between February 28 and March 9, 1958, in Oslo, Norway at the Jordal Amfi arena. The Whitby Dunlops represented Canada, winning the World Championship for the 17th time. The Soviets lost the final game to the Canadians 4–2, settling for both silver and their fourth European Championship. Scoring leader Connie Broden is the only player to win the Stanley Cup and the World Championship in the same year, having played on the Montreal Canadiens' championship team.
The 1959 Ice Hockey World Championships were held between 5 March and 15 March 1959, in Prague, and six other cities in Czechoslovakia. Canada, represented by the Belleville McFarlands, won their 18th World championship, winning every game but their last. The Soviet Union finished second, claiming their fifth European title followed by the host Czechoslovaks. In the consolation round, West Germany played against East Germany for the first time in a World Championship, winning easily, 8–0. The Canadian games were broadcast on CJBQ radio by Jack Devine.
The East York Lyndhursts were an amateur senior ice hockey team based in East York, Ontario, Canada. The team was sponsored by Lyndhurst Motors, played in the Toronto Ice Hockey League as part of the Ontario Hockey Association, and represented the Canada men's national ice hockey team at the 1954 Ice Hockey World Championships. The Lyndhursts were the first Canadian team to play against the Soviet Union national ice hockey team and they lost by a 7–2 score, to place second overall at the World Championships.
Sweden 
Soviet Union (1st title)
Canada 
Czechoslovakia 
