Alena Mills is stepping back from Czechia's national team. The longtime captain plans to continue playing, but has officially closed out her national team career.
Alena Mills is stepping back from Czechia's national team. The longtime captain plans to continue playing, but has officially closed out her national team career.
Alena Mills, the captain of Czechia's national women's hockey team has announced she will step back from the program, although she will continue to play hockey.
"It's been delightful, but it's time to say farewell. I started in the national team as a young girl back in 2004, and today, after 19 years, I leave as the team captain, with a heart filled with pride and gratitude, and an incredible amount of shared experiences," Mills wrote on Instagram.
Mills has helped Czechia grow from an afterthought in women's hockey, to the back-to-back World Championship bronze medalists.
Mills has played 79 games for Czechia at the World Championships and Olympic Games.
"The journey of women's hockey hasn't always been easy," Mills wrote. "Together, we faced numerous challenges, fought against expectations and stereotypes. But each fall and every failure only strengthened us and taught us how to be stronger, more determined, and how to constantly improve. Through the repetitive cycle of promotion to the elite division and relegation to lower divisions, all the way to earning two medals."
Despite stepping away from Team Czechia, Mills plans to continue playing hockey, and has been linked to multiple teams in the PHF this offseason. A legend in Czechia women's hockey, Mills steps away leaving the national program in the hands of a new generation of standout players.
"After 14 years I am pleased to pass on the captain's "C" to a new generation of talented and determined female hockey players," she wrote. "I believe that the journey of Czech women's hockey is only just beginning and that the new generation will achieve what seemed impossible to us years ago. They will further expand and strengthen women's hockey in our country. They will reach for successes that still lie ahead of us."