This week, the Mother City plays host to the IIHF 2023 Senior Men's Ice Hockey World Championship Division III Group A, with 10 action packed round robin games.

Having been cancelled in both 2020 and 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the IIHF Men's Ice Hockey World Championships returned in 2022, with the national men's team winning gold on home soil and being promoted to play in Division III Group A.

The first puck dropped yesterday, 17 April 2023, at the Ice Station at Grand West with a clash between Thailand and Chinese Taipei.

The opening game was followed by a feisty battle between South Africa and Turkmenistan, with the home team skating out 9 – 6 winners in the end.

After day one, the Rhinos are joint top of the Division III Group A standings with Chinese Taipei.

The tournament concludes on 23 April 2023.

'It has been an ice hockey fest over the past three months, with Cape Town hosting the women's and under-18 divisional World Championships, and now our men's team is in action too. It's amazing to see the team get off to a winning start, and we hope that they can repeat last year's heroics. It excites me to see how much the sport is growing, and we look forward to continuing our partnership with the Western Province Ice Hockey Association to grow the status of ice hockey and ensure that we provide an enabling environment for young and pro athletes to showcase their skills and abilities. We are extremely proud of the Rhinos success in this Division and encourage all Capetonians to show their support once again.' said the City's Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security Alderman JP Smith.

There is FREE access to day time games, while tickets for night time games start from only R100.

Tickets are available at Computicket.

The match schedule is as follows: