The 2010 IIHF World U20 Championship, commonly referred to as the 2010 World Junior Hockey Championships (2010 WJHC), is the 2010 edition of the World Junior Ice Hockey Championships and is currently being hosted in Saskatoon and Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, from December 26, 2009 to January 5, 2010. This is the second time Saskatoon has hosted the tournament, after hosting it in 1991. The medal round, as well as all Canada's preliminary round games, will take place in Saskatoon at the Credit Union Centre. The arena has undergone renovations and upgrades before the 2010 tournament, including an increase in capacity.[1] Other games are being played at the Brandt Centre in Regina, which has also received upgrades.[2] In addition, pre-tournament exhibition games were held in other towns and cities throughout the province as well as Calgary, Alberta.[3][4]
Other host candidates
Initially, Switzerland was chosen to host the tournament, but later withdrew.[5]
Three bid groups submitted letters of intent to host the 2010 tournament prior to the February 1, 2008 deadline:[6]
All three bid groups formally placed their bids before the April 1, 2008 deadline and made their final presentations to the selection committee in Toronto on June 9-June 10, 2008.[6]
On July 7, 2008, Hockey Canada and the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) announced Saskatoon and Regina have been chosen to host the tournament. This was Saskatchewan's first successful bid in five recent attempts, after failing to land the 1999, 2003, 2006, and 2009 tournaments.[1]
Results from any games that were played during the preliminary round are carried forward to the relegation round. The bottom two teams are relegated to Division I for the 2011 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships.
The following teams took part in the Division I tournament. Group A played in Megeve & Saint-Gervais, France between December 14 and December 20, 2009. Group B played in Gdansk, Poland between December 14 and December 20, 2009:
The following teams took part in the Division II tournament. Group A played in Debrecen, Hungary between December 13 and December 19, 2009. Group B played in Narva, Estonia between December 12 and December 18, 2009:
The following teams will take part in the Division III tournament. The tournament will take place in Istanbul, Turkey from January 4 to January 10, 2010.