CALGARY, AB – Canada’s National Women’s Team is in Victoria, BC from March 26-29, as it prepares for the 2008 IIHF World Women’s Championship in Harbin, China. The 2008 IIHF World Women’s Championship will run from April 4-12, 2008. Twenty players, plus two alternates, will take to the ice for practices and games at Victoria’s Bear Mountain Arena from Wednesday through Saturday.

Canada will play two exhibition games against Midget AAA boys teams at Bear Mountain Arena. On Thursday, March 27th, it faces the South Island Thunderbirds at 7 p.m. PST. On Saturday, March 29th, Canada will take on the North Island Silvertips at 3 p.m. Tickets for both games are $7 and are available at www.victoriagrizzlies.com or by calling (250) 385-1555. All practices are open to the public, free of charge.

“We’re looking forward to a great week in Victoria,” says Peter Smith, head coach of Canada’s National Women’s Team for 2007-08. “This is an important camp for our players, as we prepare for the challenges that lie ahead in China.”

Canada’s National Women’s Team will stay in Victoria through Saturday, March 29th, and will depart for the Vancouver International Airport early Sunday morning, March 30th. Canada’s staff and players will depart from Vancouver on Air Canada Flight 29 to Beijing. The team will then board a connecting flight to Harbin, where players and staff will be until April 14th.

Media enquiries for Canada’s players and staff during the pre-worlds camp in Victoria and throughout the 2008 IIHF World Women’s Championship should be directed to Chris Jurewicz, who will be with the team for the duration of the two events. He can be reached via e-mail at [email protected]. Please note that the time in Harbin, China is 12 hours ahead of Eastern Standard Time, 14 hours ahead of MST and 15 hours ahead of PST.

Requests for interviews should be made well in advance to ensure the requests can be met.

Canada’s National Women’s Team will attempt to win its second-straight IIHF World Women’s Championship, after claiming the 2007 title in Winnipeg, MB. Canada is also trying to win its 10th world championship since the event began in 1990. Canada leads the world with nine gold medals and one silver medal. TSN/ RDS will be broadcasting Canada’s qualifying round and medal games, beginning on April 9th (time to be determined by preliminary round placing; check local listings for specific broadcast times).