Two nations, Iron and Kyrgyzstan are making their IIHF women's hockey debuts this week at the 2023 Women’s Asia and Oceania Championship.

Two countries made their IIHF women’s debut in Bangkok, Thailand on Sunday April 30, with Iran and Kyrgyzstan amongst the eight teams competing at the 2023 IIHF Women’s Asia and Oceania Championship.

Previously called the Women’s Challenge Cup of Asia, the last time this tournament was staged was in 2019, with two divisions run simultaneously, but as separate tournaments (Thailand won the top division, the Philippines won Division I). This time around, there will be one champion. The eight teams are split into two round robin pools (Group A: Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, United Arab Emirates; Group B: India, Iran, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan) that will cross over for the playoffs.

Iran enters the tournament as a potential surprise medal contender. The development of the sport in Iran has been swift. With the country’s first full-size rink opening in 2019 in Tehran, the Iranian women’s national team was formed in 2020, drawing predominantly upon players with an inline hockey background. There is now a five-team women’s league that crowned its first champion in 2021, and (somewhat unique when compared to other IIHF members) Iran is listed as having more female players (103) than male players (100).

Earlier this year, Iran had an opportunity to prepare for the Asia and Oceania Championship by testing themselves against other national teams at a tournament in Kazan, Russia. Collecting wins over the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, Iran progressed to the final, which they lost to the home team, Tatarstan.

They looked to be in good form in their first IIHF game in Thailand as well, winning 17-1 over India.

For Kyrgyzstan, the Women’s Asia and Oceania Championship will be a first look at a young program that we know little about. On the men’s side, the past year has been monumental. Within just one year, Kyrgyzstan has moved up two IIHF men’s divisions, winning Division IV gold at home in Bishkek in 2022 and Division III Group B gold this March.

The country’s first all-women's team made headlines in early 2020, with 15 women playing on an outdoor rink in the village of Otradnoe. Coach Salamat Abdrakhmanov wanted to create a team for his daughter and her friends, so he made an outdoor rink overtop of what used to be potato fields, and converted his garage and summer kitchen into the team’s dressing room.

A documentary about this team was made in 2021, sharing the stories of the players and the obstacles they’ve faced—from only having access to a useable outdoor rink for two months out of the year, to travelling long distances over dangerous mountain passes to play other (often men’s) teams.

There have been concerted efforts to grow the women's game in Kyrgyzstan and get to the point where they can ice a national team. Earlier this year, the Ice Hockey Federation of the Kyrgyz Republic sent two women’s national team players, Sezim Salamatova and Maanai Bekturganova, to an IIHF Beginner Coaching Workshop in Abu Dhabi. The number of players has grown outside of Otradnoe as well, and the IIHF lists the total number of female players in Kyrgyzstan as 75. The team they’ve rostered for the Asia and Oceania Championship has an average age of 18, with players coming from three different teams.

Kyrgyzstan started the tournament with a big win over Kuwait, outshooting them 23-4 and winning 3-1.

They will meet Iran in their final round robin game on May 3. Quarter-finals will be contested on May 4, followed by semi-finals on May 5 and medal games on May 6.