Jamaica is hoping to become known for more than just bobsledding at the Winter Olympics in the near future.
The island country is putting together a men’s hockey team with the goal of actually competing in the Olympics in the next eight to 20 years, according to the Toronto Star. The effort is being headed by Graeme Townshend, the first Jamaican-born player in the NHL, who understands how much work he has ahead of him.
“If Jamaica can get a team in the world championships or the Olympics, that’s like a miracle,” the head coach said. “It’s something that’s so outlandish that I think it actually might work.”
Jamaica is on its way to making that dream into a reality as they hosted tryouts for the country’s first national squad in Ontario, Canada, over the weekend. They are hoping to begin playing exhibition games by next summer, but in the meantime, the Jamaican Olympic Ice Hockey Federation is getting to work on building an ice rink in the country that currently does not have one.
It has all the makings of a great story — or, you know, a nice follow-up movie to “Cool Runnings.”
Photo via Twitter/@SInow
