Arenas were not packed with thousands of rabid fans.

Indeed, the first international women’s hockey tournament was nothing but a start, a start with the most humble ambitions, but a start all the same. Canada, because it had more women players than anywhere, had two teams, one from Ontario, one from the other provinces.

The Americans were there, as were Sweden and Switzerland. The Netherlands and Japan rounded out the seven-team tournament which became the first – and unofficial – Women’s World Championship for ice hockey.

“This truly was the turning point for women’s hockey ‘against all odds’,” admitted its organizer, OWHA president Fran Rider many years later.

Finland wasn’t there and neither were the eastern Europeans, but Rider had made inroads and strong connections with the Swedes and Dutch, so they were there. The games were played in North York, a municipality now part of Toronto, at the Centennial Arena, a local arena where working men played shinny at all hours of the night and kids had practice at all hours of the morning.

Such was the schedule and lack of resources that players paid their own way to fly to Toronto. They stayed with other players or friends or billets or the sponsor hotel. Each day one team had to play two games in the same day!

In the end, Canada beat Ontario 4-0 to claim the gold medal, and the U.S. beat Sweden, 5-0, to claim third spot after Ontario had defeated it, 5-2, in the semi-finals.

The historic event featured many names which would become familiar to hockey fans a short time later. Playing for Canada were Shirley Cameron, France St-Louis, and Dawn McGuire. Ontario had Angela James and Geraldine Heaney. The Americans featured Cindy Curley and Lauren Apollo. Switzerland had Sandra Dombrowski, future referee supervisor for women’s hockey at the IIHF.