In Moncton, a committee called “Team Moncton” has been formed to organise community activities related to the upcoming IIHF World Championship games.
“Typically, you have two years to prepare for this. In essence, we’ve had three and a half months, according to co-chair Bill Whalen.
Since Russia, the intended host nation, started its invasion of Ukraine in February, forcing organisers to locate a new host location, the 2023 World Juniors have been dogged by controversy.
Hockey Canada, one of the major organisers of the games, was engaged in a sexual assault scandal shortly after Halifax and Moncton were selected to host the events in May, casting doubt on the tournament’s survival and delaying some of the planning.
According to John Wishart, CEO of the Greater Moncton Chamber of Commerce, “there have been some pauses and starts (in the planning process) as we’ve waited for Hockey Canada to inform us how much involvement or sponsorship money they’ll have.”
He stated, “The actual job is actually getting beginning right now.
According to Whalen, Team Moncton and a group of volunteers are in charge of planning a number of events that take place in conjunction with the games, such as a New Year’s Eve celebration after the games on December 31 between the Sweden and Canadian teams and the Finland and United States teams.
Our main goal is to turn the plaza in front of the Avenir Center into a sort of entertainment area.
As a result, there will be events there every day, the Ian Fowler skating oval will be busy, and there will always be local musicians performing on stage, according to Whalen.
Wishart said it will be difficult for local companies to obtain personnel to work in hotels and restaurants throughout the events.
Between Christmas and New Year’s, restaurants, pubs, and hotels typically close down or operate with fewer hours.
Therefore, we’re planning a workforce fair in November just for such companies. To ensure that all of those locations can stay open, we’re working to put some temporary workers in place, he said.
He said the controversy doesn’t seem to have affected uptake on hotel reservations during the games.
“(Hotel operators) say normally in the period from Christmas to mid-January, their occupancy rates would be around 15 per cent.
Although it is the slowest time of the year, they are anticipating at least 50% occupancy, nearly entirely from spectators, teams, and officials attending the world juniors. ”.
On a tight schedule, World Juniors preparations are intensifying in Moncton.
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