From the time ringette was first introduced to Prince George in 1980, thousands of young athletes have been given the chance to play what is known as the fastest game on ice.
Geared mostly to girls as a non-contact alternative to hockey, ringette also includes male players.
Five of the 15 players on the Prince George Fire and Ice under-16 team which won the Okanagan Autumn Blast tournament in Vernon last weekend are boys.
Joy Hoffman helped found the Prince George Ringette Association (PGRA) 36 years ago. She was known as a tireless volunteer who continued to promote the game until her death in 1992. Her legacy continued this weekend with the 25th annual Joy Hoffman Memorial ringette tournament at Kin 2 and 3.
Twenty-six teams in seven age divisions played each other in the three-day event, the second tournament of the season in the Northern Ringette League, which includes Prince George, Houston, Terrace and Quesnel.
For teams in the U-14 and older age divisions, the tournament served as a qualifier for the provincial championships.
Prince George will host the 2017 double-A provincial tournament,
Feb. 24-26.
There are 161 registered ringette players in the city, about the same as last season. PGRA president Brenda Atkinson says the new under-seven division continues to draw new players into the game, including young boys who join ringette to develop their skating skills and learn rink awareness before moving on to hockey.
"Last year we started the U-7 division and it broke up the skaters that are five and six years old, as opposed to playing in the U-9 division with kids who had been playing for two years, so they learn the game at their level," said Atkinson.
In recognition of Hoffman's contributions to the sport and that of the current league volunteers, a commemorative cake-cutting ceremony was held on Saturday at the Kin Centre atrium.
