1961 Ice Hockey World Championships
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country |  Switzerland |
| Dates | 1–12 March |
| Teams | 8 |
| Final positions | |
Champions  |  Canada (19th title) |
Runner-up  |  Czechoslovakia |
Third place  |  Soviet Union |
| Fourth place |  Sweden |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Games played | 28 |
| Goals scored | 236 (8.43 per game) |
| Attendance | 141,300 (5,046 per game) |
| Scoring leader(s) | Boris Mayorov 17 points |
The 1961 World Ice Hockey Championships was the 28th edition of the Ice Hockey World Championships. The tournament was held in Geneva and Lausanne, Switzerland from March 1 to March 12, 1961. The games were played outdoors on a frozen pool, a glare made it hard for players to see well, however photographers were able to get aerial pictures from the diving board. Canada, represented by the Trail Smoke Eaters, won their nineteenth international title. It would be the last championship for Canada in thirty-three years.[1] By beating out the Soviets for the Silver, the Czechs won their tenth European title. The final day was marred by controversy of a political nature, when Willi Daume, (president of West Germany hockey), forbade his team to take the ice against East Germany. The reason was to avoid the possibility of honouring the East German's new flag.[2]
A record twenty nations participated in three groups, with South Africa appearing for the first time.[3] Teams were divided into the three tiers, roughly following the 1959 championships, and using qualification games, to establish an eight team group A, a six team group B, and a six team group C. The South African team did not have the minimum number of players so forty-five-year-old federation president Tom Durling played despite not actually being a citizen of the country.[4] Promotion and relegation did not begin yet, but it was a big step towards formulating the process.
Qualification matches for Group A and B
The nations who finished 1st through 6th in 1959 played in Group A. The nation ranked 7th played the hosts, and 8th played 9th to qualify the final two entries.
| 1 March | Switzerland | 5-6 OT |  West Germany |
| 1 March | East Germany  | 6-1 |  Norway |
World Championship Group A (Switzerland)
Final Round
| Place | Team | Matches | Won | Drawn | Lost | Difference | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Canada |
7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 45 - 11 | 13 |
| 2 | Czechoslovakia |
7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 33 - 09 | 13 |
| 3 | Soviet Union |
7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 51 - 20 | 10 |
| 4 | Sweden |
7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 33 - 27 | 8 |
| 5 | East Germany |
7 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 21 - 33 | 4 |
| 6 |  United States |
7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 24 - 43 | 3 |
| 7 |  Finland |
7 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 19 - 43 | 3 |
| 8 | West Germany |
7 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 10 - 50 | 2 |
| 2 March | Canada | 6-1 | Sweden |
| 2 March | Czechoslovakia | 6-0 | Finland |
| 2 March | Soviet Union | 13-2 | United States |
| 4 March | Czechoslovakia | 4-1 | United States |
| 4 March | Finland | 6-4 | East Germany |
| 4 March | Canada | 9-1 | West Germany |
| 4 March | Soviet Union | 6-2 | Sweden |
| 5 March | Canada | 7-4 | United States |
| 5 March | Czechoslovakia | 6-0 | West Germany |
| 5 March | Sweden | 3-2 | East Germany |
| 5 March | Soviet Union | 7-3 | Finland |
| 7 March | Sweden | 6-4 | Finland |
| 7 March | Czechoslovakia | 6-4 | Soviet Union |
| 7 March | United States | 4-4 | West Germany |
| 7 March | Canada | 5-2 | East Germany |
| 8 March | Sweden | 12-1 | West Germany |
| 8 March | East Germany | 6-5 | United States |
| 9 March | Soviet Union | 9-1 | East Germany |
| 9 March | Finland | 3-3 | West Germany |
| 9 March | Canada | 1-1 | Czechoslovakia |
| 11 March | Czechoslovakia | 5-1 | East Germany |
| 11 March | Sweden | 7-3 | United States |
| 11 March | Soviet Union | 11-1 | West Germany |
| 11 March | Canada | 12-1 | Finland |
| 12 March | Canada | 5-1 | Soviet Union |
| 12 March | Czechoslovakia | 5-2 | Sweden |
| 12 March | United States | 5-2 | Finland |
| 12 March | East Germany | 5-0 | West Germany |
Qualification matches for Group B and C.
The losers of the Group A qualifiers (Switzerland and Norway), were joined by the nations who finished 10th and 11th (Italy and Poland) in 1959. Remaining countries that wished to play at this level played qualification games.
| 2 March | Austria  | 6-5 |  Romania |
| 2 March | Great Britain  | 18-1 |  Belgium |
World Championship Group B (Switzerland)
Final Round
| Place | Team | Matches | Won | Drawn | Lost | Difference | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | Norway |
5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 27 - 09 | 8 |
| 10 | Great Britain |
5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 21 - 11 | 8 |
| 11 | Switzerland |
5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 17 - 15 | 5 |
| 12 |  Italy |
5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 19 - 20 | 5 |
| 13 |  Poland |
5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 13 - 17 | 2 |
| 14 | Austria |
5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 10 - 35 | 2 |
| 3 March | Switzerland | 0-6 | Norway |
| 3 March | Great Britain | 10-2 | Austria |
| 3 March | Italy | 5-3 | Poland |
| 5 March | Italy | 7-2 | Austria |
| 6 March | Norway | 5-3 | Poland |
| 6 March | Italy | 3-3 | Great Britain |
| 6 March | Switzerland | 9-1 | Austria |
| 7 March | Switzerland | 1-3 | Poland |
| 9 March | Great Britain | 3-2 | Poland |
| 9 March | Norway | 7-2 | Austria |
| 10 March | Austria | 3-2 | Poland |
| 10 March | Norway | 7-1 | Italy |
| 10 March | Switzerland | 2-2 | Great Britain |
| 11 March | Switzerland | 5-3 | Italy |
| 12 March | Great Britain | 3-2 | Norway |
World Championship Group C (Switzerland)
Final Round
| Place | Team | Matches | Won | Drawn | Lost | Difference | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | Romania |
5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 69 - 05 | 10 |
| 16 |  France |
5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 34 - 16 | 8 |
| 17 |  Yugoslavia |
5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 34 - 22 | 6 |
| 18 |  Netherlands |
5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 18 - 36 | 4 |
| 19 |  South Africa |
5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 18 - 47 | 2 |
| 20 | Belgium |
5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 09 - 56 | 0 |
| 3 March | France | 7-3 | Netherlands |
| 3 March | Romania | 22-1 | Belgium |
| 3 March | Yugoslavia | 12-3 | South Africa |
| 4 March | Yugoslavia | 9-2 | Netherlands |
| 5 March | Romania | 14-0 | South Africa |
| 6 March | Netherlands | 8-4 | South Africa |
| 6 March | France | 10-0 | Belgium |
| 6 March | Romania | 12-1 | Yugoslavia |
| 7 March | France | 11-2 | South Africa |
| 8 March | Yugoslavia | 10-2 | Belgium |
| 8 March | Romania | 12-0 | Netherlands |
| 9 March | France | 3-2 | Yugoslavia |
| 10 March | Romania | 9-3 | France |
| 10 March | Netherlands | 5-4 | Belgium |
| 11 March | South Africa | 9-2 | Belgium |
European Championship medal table
 |
Czechoslovakia
|
 |
Soviet Union
|
 |
Sweden
|
| 4 | East Germany
|
| 5 | Finland
|
| 6 | West Germany
|
Tournament awards
- Best players selected by the directorate:
- Best Goalkeeper:
Seth Martin - Best Defenseman:
Ivan Tregubov - Best Forward:
Vlastimil Bubnik
- Best Goalkeeper:
Notes
- ^ Szemberg & Podnieks 2007, p. 199
- ^ When flags stopped games
- ^ Duplacey p. 504
- ^ Summary in french
References
- Championnat du monde 1961
- Duplacey, James (1998). Total Hockey: The official encyclopedia of the National Hockey League. Total Sports. pp. 498–528. ISBN 0-8362-7114-9.
- Podnieks, Andrew (2010). IIHF Media Guide & Record Book 2011. Moydart Press. pp. 136–7.
- Szemberg, Szymon; Podnieks, Andrew, eds. (2007), World of Hockey: Celebrating a Century of the IIHF, Bolton, Ontario: Fenn Publishing, ISBN 1-55168-307-5
- Ottawa Citizen - 3 Feb 1961
- The Montreal Gazette - 6 Feb 1961
- The Hartford Courant, Feb 6, 1961, page 15
- New York Times, February 12, 1961, Page S6
- The Montreal Gazette - 13 Feb 1961
- The Pittsburgh Press - 17 Feb 1961
- Ottawa Citizen - 1 Mar 1961
- Tri City Herald - 8 Mar 1961
- The Montreal Gazette - 9 Mar 1961
- The Montreal Gazette - 11 Mar 1961
