Bermuda are in a strong position to host the ball hockey World Masters Championships next year.

George Gortsos, the president of the International Street & Ball Hockey Federation, was on island last week, and is impressed with Bermuda’s rink, at the Pembroke Community Club on North Shore Road, as well as the island’s national team during past World Championships.

As a warm-up to the potential event, the Bermuda Ball Hockey Association are playing host to the Bermuda Ball Hockey Classic from September 28 to October 2 this year.

The Masters were last held in Banff, Alberta, Canada, last year, for men who are 40 and over and women 35-plus.

“There will be countries coming to Bermuda from Europe, North America, the Caribbean, Asia and they would be coming here to be the best at their age group at our sport,” Gortsos said. “The last Masters World Championship was held in 2016 in Banff, Canada. We had 16 teams there. You’re talking from anywhere from 400 to 500 players descending into Bermuda.

“If Bermuda win the bid, Bermuda could be a venue that we could come back to for other events in the future and bring a lot of economic impact to the island. When you talk about 5-600 players at the Masters, you’re talking about families, wives, husbands. You’re talking about 800-900 people coming for about six-seven days. I cannot even fathom how many millions of dollars that is, but that’s a lot of money.”

Gortsos said that Bermuda’s national team have been a credit to the island at previous tournaments.

“What these guys have done across the world is well respected,” he said. “They have represented Bermuda with class. They’ve shown people from Asia and Europe who don’t know anything about Bermuda, what Bermuda is about.

“I’m here to help them because of the legacy of excellence they’ve left and I’m their portal to make the bid next week that hopefully will be won and to leave a legacy here.

“We’re interested in training some young Bermudians to referee in their league so that maybe they can ref in some of our international rinks. We also hope that some young Bermudians will look at the sport and maybe want to take part in a world championships.”

The rink is on a magnificent cliff-top setting and Mathieu Desjardin, of the BBHA, is excited about the Classic and the potential for the Masters here.

“The Classic is something we partner with the Bermuda Tourism Authority. The rink is incredible. It’s at Pembroke Community Club, just outside town.

“It’s on the water, basically on a cliff. It’s about 90 per cent size of an NHL rink, so it’s pretty big and what we’re going to do is use the Classic as a practice run for The Masters, if we get it after the bid next week.

“There are a few teams on island, we just had a team registered from Washington, DC. We’re trying to get a team of ex-Bermuda players who are living abroad and waiting for a reason to come back, who can use this tournament as an excuse to come and visit. The aim is to have from six to eight teams, we’ll see if we get there.”

Another aim is to see ball hockey grow as a sport in Bermuda.

“I’d say there are about 100 guys playing ball hockey in Bermuda,” Desjardins explained.

“Every year we have six teams and we change the teams every year with a draft that happens at Outback, playing once or twice a week. Every two years we end up going to the worlds.

“We took a team this year to Pardubice in the Czech Republic. They’re a great group of guys and it keeps us out of trouble on the island.”

Gortsos is clearly impressed with the rink.

“Without the foresight to build that rink, we wouldn’t have a platform to talk and also the legacy of respect they’ve built by coming to world events, would make it a credible jump for people to come from traditional hockey nations to Bermuda,” he said.

Gortsos is also keen on having the Masters as a destination event, and is clear that Bermuda is more than well equipped to offer that.

“The first thing that hits me [about Bermuda] is how nice the people are,” he said. “Secondly, it is a beautiful spot.

“I think for our Masters players, we are looking for a good venue to play hockey, but also a destination, and Bermuda’s a destination.

“So we’re hoping, based on the good work of people like Mathieu and the committee that next week if the bid gets voted through, we’ll start running.”

Desjardins is keen to get more Bermudians aware of the sport, starting with getting involved at Harbour Nights in Hamilton.

“The BTA love that idea,” he said. “We’ll try to have a fun zone with hockey, get the Bermudians to shoot, and win some prizes and some hockey gear. It’s actually a great sport to watch.”

Gortsos also wants to create a legacy that will see young Bermudians playing the sport.

“The beauty about ball hockey is that’s it’s not an expensive sport,” he said. “All you need is a stick and some gloves. You don’t have to buy skates, you just have to run. And it’s an easy sport to learn. That’s why we want to build a legacy.

“These guys have built a great arena on their own and hopefully we’ll be able to come to Bermuda regularly and have events here and have Bermuda known as a ball hockey destination.

“For instance, the UK started their ball hockey programme ten years ago. It’s a non-traditional ball hockey market and now they have over 1,000 kids playing. That’s where the future is, getting the kids playing.”

And Gortsos even thinks Bermuda will be medal contenders if the event comes here.

“I have coached Canada at four world championships, so I have gone on to see players go on to the NHL, but I’ve also seen the growth of people being involved in this sport,” he said.

“When you go and you represent Bermuda and you’re from Bermuda in Europe against Canada or the Czech Republic, that’s a growth opportunity and that’s what kids today need.

“They need to be proud of representing this beautiful country and that’s what this sport offers.

“These guys have won the B Pool before and they will be, if we hold the tournament here as most of their players get older, they’ll be right in the thick of things to win a medal at The Masters. “I’m hoping that Bermuda fans will get behind them.”

For more information on ball hockey, check out www.bermudahockey.com, http://isbhf.com/ and http://bermudaballhockey.pointstreaksites.com/view/bermudaballhockey.