GENEVA, March 19, 2004. (RIA Novosti) - A match between main rivals, the Russian and US teams, will open the world youth hockey championship in 2005. On Friday the International Hockey Federation published the schedule of the championship.
The match will take place at the stadium Ralph Englestad Arenas in Grand Forks (North Dakota). The US team is the world champion now. The Russian youth team won this title twice, in 2001 and 2002.
Russia and the USA will play in Group A with Czechia, Switzerland and Belarus. Canada, Finland, Sweden and Germany will play in Group B.
The USA last hosted the world youth hockey championship in 1996. Then, in Boston, Canadian hockey players won gold medals and Russians took third place.
