Levi speeds to top with SA ice hockey

It will be a dream come true for Yuval Levi, 20, when he takes to the ice as part of the South African senior men’s team at the 2025 International Ice Hockey Federation Ice Hockey World Championship later this month.

“It’s an absolute privilege to play for the men’s team, something I’ve dreamed about since I started playing at the age of seven, so it was a huge achievement to be selected for the team,” says the Johannesburg-based Levi, who recently captained the South African Under-20 team.

The championship, for Division III nations, is taking place in Istanbul, Turkey, from 21 to 27 April. South Africa will come up against the host nation, Kyrgyzstan, Luxembourg, Turkmenistan, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

This will be Levi’s first time competing in an international tournament for the men’s team, having previously done so with the Under-20 and Under-18 teams.

He earned his spot for the senior team after shining with 24 points, each point being for a goal or an assist, in 19 games for the Under-18 and Under-20 teams. He was selected out of a group of about 40 players who were invited to a training camp.

The training camp was similar to the ones they usually have every few weeks, Levi says. “The Cape Town players fly up to Johannesburg, and we have a camp in Forest Hill Ice Rink in Centurion from Friday morning to Sunday, consisting of sessions on the ice, a video session, a fitness test, and teambuilding activity like padel.” Levi sits out during Shabbos.

Going into the championship, “We have always gold in mind,” Levi says. “This year, we actually have quite a young team with a few new players, including myself. We’re hoping to achieve as high a placing as we possibly can with the end goal being gold.”

Levi captained the SA Under-20 team in Thailand a few months ago in what was “a really fun, well-organised tournament. In the past few years, I was assistant captain, and then I was also captain of the Under-18 national team.”

He has been playing for the Kempton Park Wildcats in the Super League for a few years. “In the first division, I play for the Kempton Park Sabres. The rest is with the Rhinos,” as the Under-18, Under-20, and men’s national teams are called.

Levi has always been sporty, and found his niche when he and his family went to a skating academy. He enrolled in a skating course, which could have led him to become a figure skater, but that didn’t interest him. “My coach also happened to be a hockey player. He told me that I should come and give ice hockey a try that Sunday. I did and I loved the session, so I just carried on playing from then on.”

Levi loves the speed, physicality, and teamwork of ice hockey. “You need always to be aware of what’s happening because if you turn your head and you get the puck, any second you can be on the floor. Also, because the game is so fast, you need to see a few moves ahead in order to make a play.”

Levi is doing a BCom at Varsity College, and working at King David Linksfield, mainly for the DIJE (Division of Informal Jewish Education). “I also give a shiur on Gemara at Yeshiva College, and am learning in Rabbi Moffson’s kollel,” he said.

Levi always makes a plan to balance his Judaism with ice hockey. “For the tournament this year, the team is flying during Pesach, so unfortunately I can’t fly with them,” he says. “I had to get an early flight. I’m going to have to spend the last two days of Pesach alone because my father can’t come with me.

“Finding a balance is sometimes difficult, but I know my morals, I have my values, and I know that Hashem comes first. When selecting me for the team, the coaches are aware that I don’t play on Shabbos and I’m going to be davening every morning and afternoon. I can’t eat the same food as the team, so I bring my own kosher food.”

Ice hockey has been around in South Africa since as early as the mid-1900s. South Africa is ranked 47th out of 58 teams in the latest men’s ice hockey world rankings.