Blades’ Doornbos wins gold in Istanbul
Nick Doornbos dons his Australian national team jersey at the IIHF under-20 tournament in Istanbul, Turkey earlier this month. Doornbos and his Australian team won gold by defeating Israel 4-1 in the championship game. Submitted photo
Blades forward Nick Doornbos won gold with Australia’s under-20 national team in Istanbul, Turkey, earlier this month to help his national team move up from the International Ice Hockey Federation’s (IIHF) Third Division.
Doornbos and his team went 6-0 during their stint at the tournament and finished by outscoring all opponents by a collective 64-8 margin.
“It’s still settling in slowly, but in that moment in time, it was a euphoric feeling. It’s one that I definitely won’t forget. We’ve got such a close-knit group of boys on this team. It was special,” he said.
Doornbos and his Australian side began the playoff rounds with a 28-0 win over South Africa before edging out Bulgaria 4-1 in the semifinals to reach the championship game.
Heading into the game against Bulgaria, Doornbos said his team knew exactly what they had to do to win, as the year prior they were eliminated by Mexico in the semifinal round to put an end to their gold medal hopes.
After disposing of the Bulgarian side, team Australia marched into the gold medal game with confidence at an all-time high, and promptly beat Israel 4-1 to claim their gold medals.
With the win against Israel, Doornbos’s Australian squad will now be promoted to the IIHF Division Two bracket for next year’s tournament.
According to Doornbos, the promotion will come with more than just a rise in competition level.
“The sport has grown a lot over the course of the past five or six years,” he said. “Our team, as well as the girls under 18 team, both won gold this year, which I think shows our athletes’ skill level. I think there’s been a definite increase in interest in the sport back home.”
Doornbos himself had an interesting introduction to the sport as he first began skating in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada when his family moved as a result of his father’s military assignment.
According to Doornbos, having learned to play in Canada, the United States, and Australia and being able to experience the differences in play across all three regions, has served as an advantage to him when he is on the ice.
While the thrill of a gold medal victory may take a while to settle in for Doornbos, the Blades’ forward will have to shift his focus toward a new goal: winning a United States Premier Hockey League title with the Steele County team.
Fans looking to watch the gold-medal winger take the ice next will have to hit the road as the Blades will travel to the Hudson Sports and Civic Center in Hudson, Wisconsin for a Saturday, Feb. 18 clash with the Havoc at 7 p.m.