Team Canada’s Olympic Women’s Hockey Team Played In KN95 Masks & Still Beat Russia

Just when you thought you’d seen everything on the ice, Team Canada’s Olympic women’s hockey team took down the Russia Olympic Committee while wearing KN95 masks after an hour-long delay.

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The preliminary game — which took place on Sunday, February 7 — pitted Team Canada against the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) and ended in a 6-1 win for Canada.

Despite the convincing victory, it was a slow start for the Canadian athletes as the puck drop was delayed for around an hour.

The late start was due to safety concerns, per CBC News, as the ROC had not provided Canada with its team’s COVID-19 test results.

The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) didn’t confirm too many details about what exactly happened in that hour. However, in a notice, they said the delay was “to ensure full understanding of the teams about health and safety measures in place.”

“Out of caution and concern for the health and safety of the players, the IIHF agreed with the participating teams to play the game with masks on,” it said.

Eventually, both teams agreed to take to the ice wearing KN95 masks underneath their hockey helmets and masks.

All competitors sported the face coverings until the third period when the Russian players took theirs off.

Their Canadian counterparts wore masks until the whole thing had ended.

Following the win, hockey fans and Team Canada supporters took to social media to praise the players for prioritizing their health and for wearing face coverings throughout the match.

“The Canadian team is playing FREAKING OLYMPIC HOCKEY in face masks. I never want to hear another dude bro complain about having to wear one in the grocery store ever again,” wrote one person, whose message was retweeted over 13,000 times.

It’s not the only story about COVID-19 policies and restrictions that the Beijing 2022 Olympics have put in place.

The strict health measures at the Games are to ensure that no outbreaks happen, but they’ve also resulted in a few athletes missing out due to mandatory isolation.

( Edited by Michael/Carol  Reviewed by Lucia )