American Hearing Impaired Hockey Association
Encyclopedia
The American Hearing Impaired Hockey Association (AHIHA) was established in 1973 by Chicago Blackhawks
Stan Mikita
, and a local business man by the name of Irv Tiahnybik, after Irv discovered the difficulties his hard-of-hearing son was having with his hearing teammates. The hockey
camp grew quickly, and drew deaf and hard-of-hearing ice hockey players from all over the country.
The organization hosts the annual, week-long Stan Mikita Hockey Camp in Woodridge, Illinois
at the Seven Bridges Ice Arena. The camp itself is free, though players do have to supply their own equipment and pay for their hotel room.
In addition to sponsoring the camp, AHIHA also helps advocate for its players, provides scholarships, and helps children obtain hearing aid
s. The Deaflympics
ice hockey
team is typically comprised almost solely of AHIHA players, and represented the USA once again in 2007 at Salt Lake City.
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...
Stan Mikita
Stan Mikita
Stanislav "Stan" Mikita , is a Slovak-born Canadian retired professional ice hockey player, generally regarded as the best centre of the 1960s. In 1961, he won the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks, with whom he played his entire career.-Early life:Mikita was born in Sokolče, Slovak Republic...
, and a local business man by the name of Irv Tiahnybik, after Irv discovered the difficulties his hard-of-hearing son was having with his hearing teammates. The hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
camp grew quickly, and drew deaf and hard-of-hearing ice hockey players from all over the country.
The organization hosts the annual, week-long Stan Mikita Hockey Camp in Woodridge, Illinois
Woodridge, Illinois
Woodridge is a suburb of Chicago, located primarily in DuPage County, Illinois with portions in Will County and Cook County. It uses the 630 and 331 area codes. The population was 30,934 at the 2000 census. A special census commissioned in 2003 put the population at 33,253...
at the Seven Bridges Ice Arena. The camp itself is free, though players do have to supply their own equipment and pay for their hotel room.
In addition to sponsoring the camp, AHIHA also helps advocate for its players, provides scholarships, and helps children obtain hearing aid
Hearing aid
A hearing aid is an electroacoustic device which typically fits in or behind the wearer's ear, and is designed to amplify and modulate sound for the wearer. Earlier devices, known as "ear trumpets" or "ear horns", were passive funnel-like amplification cones designed to gather sound energy and...
s. The Deaflympics
Deaflympics
The Deaflympics are an International Olympic Committee -sanctioned event at which deaf athletes compete at an elite level...
ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team is typically comprised almost solely of AHIHA players, and represented the USA once again in 2007 at Salt Lake City.