Champions! Russia sink Canada to win world hockey title
Published 19 May, 2008, 05:24
Russia staged a remarkable comeback in Sunday’s World Ice Hockey final against Canada to claim their first title in 15 years. The home team led for most of the match, but in a dramatic turnaround Russia levelled in the last period. Ilya Kovalchuk scored the winner in overtime, giving Russia a 5-4 victory.
For the second time in post-Soviet history, Russia became world hockey champions. They'd done it 22 times as the Soviet Union but it's the the first time in 15 years that Russia is top of the world.
Thousands of fans took to the streets of Moscow to celebrate and drivers honked their horns. For one memorable night only, traffic rules simply didn’t exist in Moscow.
Russian supporters were also celebrating the victory at the stadium in Quebec. More than 13,000 fans turned up to see the latest chapter in the Russia versus Canada saga. Canada hosted the game but Russia's presence clearly dominated the event.
Canada's crushing defeat brought an end to a 17-game winning streak dating back to last year's gold medal win. The team hoped to become the first host country to win the world championship since the Soviet Union in 1986.
Russia and Canada are now the most successful teams in the history of international ice hockey. After Russia's latest win they now have 24 world titles each.
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