Hockey at the Winter Olympics will be played on shorter ice than NHL dimensions

MILAN (AP) — Hockey, one of the premier events at the Winter Olympics and one that is welcoming NHL players back for the first time in more than a decade, will take place on ice that is shorter than NHL-regulation size.

Men's and women's games at two arenas will be played in rinks that are 60 meters long by 26 meters wide, or 196.85-by-85.3 feet. NHL dimensions are 200 by 85 feet (60.96 by 25.908 meters), so the Olympic ice will be slightly wider and more than 3 feet shorter.

The International Ice Hockey Federation approved the Milan rinks, which fit one of the governing body’s standard sizes and was used by the Pittsburgh Penguins and Nashville Predators for two games in Stockholm in November.

The IIHF shifted to the NHL dimensions at the Olympics beginning in 2018 and used again in 2022. The 2026 Games in February mark the first time NHL players will be at the Olympics since 2014 in Sochi.

The IIHF on Monday confirmed the different size was in place in Milan without explaination.

“While these dimensions differ slightly from a typical NHL rink, they are consistent with IIHF regulations, match the rink size used at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games and are fully consistent with the dimensions the NHL requires as part of its Global Series Game arena specifications,” the federation said. “All involved, the IIHF, the Organizing Committee, NHL, NHLPA, IOC and the relevant venue authorities agree that the differences in rink specifications are insignificant, and should not impact either the safety or quality of game play.”

Olympic hockey had been played on international ice of 60 by 30 meters (196.85 by 98.4 feet) in 1998, 2006 and 2014, with a slight variation in Salt Lake City in 2002. It was played on NHL-sized ice in Vancouver in 2010 because of the existing arenas.

“It’s the same for every team, and I think that’s the bottom line,” Finland men’s hockey general manager Jere Lehtinen told The Associated Press. “Our coaches, maybe it’s more interesting and something you need to pay attention more.”

Canada general manager Doug Armstrong first brought up the ice being slightly off from NHL regulation size on a podcast in early September and then discussed it again in October. National federations have been aware of the specs for quite some time; Canada assistant coach Peter DeBoer broached the topic recently on a radio show, raising questions about why it's not NHL-sized ice.

The ice dimensions will be the same in both hockey arenas in February: the main arena that is still being built and the smaller, temporary venue that is situated inside an exhibition center.

Construction at the Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena — the new, 16,000-seat venue on the outskirts of Milan — is going down to the wire and organizers told The AP that there was “no plan B.”

A test event had to be moved to the Rho Ice Hockey Arena and new test events at the main venue aren’t scheduled until Jan. 9-11, less than a month before the first puck is dropped. Workers on Friday were still putting the finishing touches to the venue in Rho, just three days before the start of the IIHF Group B Under 20 World Championship that will serve as a test event.

“We’re aware that they’re behind schedule a little bit, but we’re all assuming that that’ll all be taken care of," Canada men’s assistant coach Bruce Cassidy said last week.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman has brought up logistics concerns repeatedly. At the league’s annual fall Board of Governors meeting in October, he said: “We are constrained in what we can and can’t do, request and demand and if it reached a certain point, we’ll have to deal with it. But I’m not speculating, and we’ve been constantly assured by the IOC and the IIHF that it will be OK.”

The men’s Olympic hockey tournament is scheduled from Feb. 11-22. The women’s tournament runs from Feb. 5-19.

Whyno reported from New York.

AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/winter-olympics

An overview of the Ice Skating Arena where some Ice Hockey matches of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics will take place, in Rho, outskirt of Milan, Friday, Dec.5, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

An overview of the Ice Skating Arena where some Ice Hockey matches of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics will take place, in Rho, outskirt of Milan, Friday, Dec.5, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

A worker prepares the Ice Skating Arena where some Ice Hockey matches of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics will take place, in Rho, outskirt of Milan, Friday, Dec.5, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

An overview of the Ice Skating Arena where some Ice Hockey matches of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics will take place, in Rho, outskirt of Milan, Friday, Dec.5, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — The short-lived coup in Benin left “casualties on both sides” of the government forces and the mutinous soldiers, authorities said Monday, as security forces intensified the search for the coup leader who was on the run.

The military takeover attempting to overthrow President Patrice Talon, which lasted a few hours before authorities announced it had been foiled, was the latest in a series of recent coups across Africa — most following a similar pattern of disputed elections, constitutional upheaval, security crises and youth discontent.

In a statement detailing Sunday's events, Government Secretary Edouard Ouin-Ouro said the mutinous soldiers attacked Talon around 5 a.m. before being “overwhelmed by the fierce resistance of the loyal soldiers.”

The government confirmed the involvement of Nigerian and Ivorian troops in helping to thwart the coup, saying the Nigerian military had “(used) its military aircraft, which immobilized some of the armored vehicles.”

Authorities said although several arrests have been made over the coup, its apparent leader remained on the run and was being hunted. Two senior military officers held hostage by those carrying out the coup had also been released, officials said. Authorities did not specify the number of casualties.

An ongoing investigation into the coup will “identify all the perpetrators and their sponsors whoever they may be” and will assess the damage in the aftermath, Ouin-Ouro said in the statement issued after a high-level cabinet meeting chaired by the Benin leader.

A group of soldiers calling themselves the Committee for Refoundation stormed the national television station on Sunday morning to announce the coup.

Led by Lt. Col. Pascal Tigri, eight soldiers appeared in a broadcast announcing the removal of Talon, the dissolution of the government and the suspension of state institutions.

Before the coup, Tigri was a member of Talon's protection detail. As an artillery officer, he commanded a National Guard battalion between 2023 and 2025.

By Sunday afternoon, the coup was foiled by Benin's military, supported by Nigerian air and ground forces, which launched attacks against fleeing coup participants.

Calm on Monday returned to Cotonou, Benin’s administrative center, with soldiers on the streets.

Talon described the coup late Sunday as a “senseless adventure,” and said the situation was under control. He vowed to punish mutineers and ensure the safety of hostages, including some believed to be senior military officers. He didn't disclose their identities, and it wasn't clear how many were held.

The Economic Community of West African States, or ECOWAS, said Sunday that it had deployed a standby force to Benin to help preserve democracy. The troops included personnel from Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Sierra Leone. The size of the force was unclear.

A Nigerian government spokesperson said in a statement that Talon had requested Nigeria’s help. It wasn't clear how many personnel or how much equipment had been deployed.

Nigeria and the ECOWAS regional bloc hadn't intervened in a member state since 2017, when it sent troops to Gambia to force then-President Yahya Jammeh to vacate power following his election loss.

The bloc, led by Nigeria, tried to intervene in Niger after the country's 2023 coup. At that time, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu led the bloc. His threat to intervene if the junta didn't restore the ousted democratic government resulted in a standoff between the bloc and three junta-led countries, and they later left the bloc.

Analysts say Nigeria has a strategic interest in defending its borders — which it shares with Benin, Niger, Chad and Cameroon — especially now, while it experiences a severe security crisis.

“The coup in Benin is one too many. Nigeria cannot afford to be encircled by hostile governments,” Oluwole Ojewale, a senior security researcher at Dakar-based Institute for Security Studies, told The Associated Press.

As West Africa battles a surge in coups, analysts say ECOWAS lacks consistency in its response. In Gabon and Guinea-Bissau, the bloc was less assertive, and it has watched some other leaders stay in office via constitutional changes.

“You can make the argument that Tinubu needed to show some strength in preserving democracy, but this now speaks to ECOWAS' double standard," said Cheta Nwanze, a partner at the Lagos-based SBM Intelligence geopolitical consultancy firm.

Despite a history of coups following its independence from France in 1960, Benin has enjoyed relative calm in the past two decades. The country is set to elect a new president in April, because Talon is set to leave office after a decade in power.

AP’s Africa coverage at: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

Soldiers ride in a military vehicle along a street amid an attempted coup in Cotonou Benin, Sunday Dec. 6, 2025. (AP Photo)

Soldiers ride in a military vehicle along a street amid an attempted coup in Cotonou Benin, Sunday Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo)

People on motorcycles pass by soldiers guarding a street amid an attempted coup in Cotonou Benin, Sunday Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo)

People gather near a roadway amid an attempted coup in Cotonou, Benin, Sunday Dec. 7, 2025. (AP Photo)

FILE - Benin's President Patrice Talon attends a meeting with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva at Planalto presidential palace in Brasilia, Brazil, on May 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Eraldo Peres, File)