Hosts Mexico dominated on home ice to claim gold and earn promotion to Division 3A. North Korea secured silver for the second year in a row, and Hong Kong grabbed its third consecutive bronze.
IIHF World Championship Div 3B: Asian Ice Hockey Well Represented
With five out of six teams hailing from Asia – North Korea, Hong Kong, Mongolia, the Philippines, and Singapore – this year’s Division 3B highlighted the continent’s growing footprint in international hockey. The diversity of participating teams offered a unique look into the challenges and progress of the Asian ice hockey.
| 2025 IIHF World Championship Division 3B, Santiago de Querétaro | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | TEAM | RESULTS | G | P |
| 1 | 🥇Mexico | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48:12 | 15 |
| 2 | 🥈North Korea | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 38:23 | 11 |
| 3 | 🥉Hong Kong | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 42:19 | 9 |
| 4 | Mongolia | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 36:29 | 6 |
| 5 | Philippines | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 22:46 | 4 |
| 6 | Singapore | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 4:61 | 0 |
Mexico Make the Most of Home Ice
Mexico had long been a mainstay in Division 2B prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, but slipped to Division 3B following the international program’s restart. This year, the hosts lived up to their billing as tournament favorites, winning all five games and outscoring opponents 48–12. In the decisive game, they overcame their North Korean hurdle with surprising ease, cruising to a 9–2 victory.
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Leading the way was team captain Héctor Majul, who scored an incredible 15 goals in just five games. He was supported by Luis Valencia (2G, 12A), Alonso Tapia (8G, 4A), and blueliner Gonzalo Hagerman (5G, 5A). Goaltender Alfonso de Alba was named Best Goaltender of the tournament. Many of Mexico’s key players compete abroad — for example, Majul plays in Italy’s second division, while Tapia and Rodriguez are based in North America.
| 2025 IIHF World Championship Division 3B – Results | ||
|---|---|---|
| Date | Match | Result |
| 27 April 2025 | Mongolia vs Philippines | 13:7 |
| 27 April 2025 | North Korea vs Singapore | 14:1 |
| 27 April 2025 | Hong Kong vs Mexico | 2:5 |
| 28 April 2025 | Singapore vs Mongolia | 1:11 |
| 28 April 2025 | North Korea vs Hong Kong | 9:5 |
| 28 April 2025 | Mexico vs Philippines | 9:1 |
| 30 April 2025 | North Korea vs Mongolia | 7:3 |
| 30 April 2025 | Hong Kong vs Philippines | 17:2 |
| 30 April 2025 | Mexico vs Singapore | 18:1 |
| 2 May 2025 | Singapore vs Hong Kong | 0:11 |
| 2 May 2025 | Philippines vs North Korea | 5:6 OT |
| 2 May 2025 | Mongolia vs Mexico | 6:7 |
| 3 May 2025 | Philippines vs Singapore | 7:1 |
| 3 May 2025 | Hong Kong vs Mongolia | 7:3 |
| 3 May 2025 | Mexico vs North Korea | 9:2 |
North Korea’s Past and Present
North Korea once had a much higher standing in international hockey. In 1990, they ranked 21st globally and regularly beat South Korea. In fact, at the 1993 Asia Cup in Sapporo, they finished second behind Japan, ahead of both South Korea and China. However, the devastating famine of the 1990s crippled the country’s sports programs, and hockey never recovered to its former levels.
Before the pandemic, DPRK were stable in Division 2B. In 2019, they were relegated to Division 3A, and after withdrawing from two tournaments, IIHF placed them in Division 3B. They’ve remained one of the stronger sides here but – as in 2024 – fell short of promotion.
| Team North Korea at the 2025 IIHF World Championship Division 3B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NAME | GP | G | A | P |
| Yong Jo Pak | 5 | 5 | 6 | 11 |
| Il Chol Kim | 5 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| Kum Chol Han “C” | 5 | 4 | 6 | 10 |
| Chun Rim Hong “A” | 5 | 3 | 6 | 9 |
| Chung Hyok Pak | 5 | 6 | 1 | 7 |
| Kum Song Kim | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| Ju Won Rim | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Wi Song Choe | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Song Il Kim | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| Chung Hyok Kim | 5 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Chung Nam Choe | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Kum Gwang Pak | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Ui Song Ri | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Kwang Song Ho | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Il Yong Han | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Il Nam Hwang “A” | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Un Song Ri | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Hyo Jong Ji | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Goaltenders | ||||
| NAME | GP | GAA | SVS | WIN |
| Kang Song Jong | 2 | 1,5 | 90,9 | 0 |
| Kang Gun Kim | 5 | 5,05 | 81,7 | 4 |
Hong Kong’s Consistent Bronze Form
Hong Kong made its IIHF debut in 1987 but didn’t return to the World Championship circuit for another 26 years. Since then, they’ve become a regular in Division 3 and have now claimed bronze three times in a row at the 3B level.
This season marked a solid campaign for the Hong Kong program. At the 2025 Asian Winter Games, they reached the quarterfinals after beating higher-ranked Turkmenistan and losing in OT to eventual Division 3A champion Kyrgyzstan – proof that Hong Kong continues to punch above its weight.
| Team Hong Kong at the 2025 IIHF World Championship Division 3B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NAME | GP | G | A | P |
| Bryan Tang | 5 | 8 | 10 | 18 |
| Yin Lok Wong | 5 | 6 | 10 | 16 |
| Justin Cheng “C” | 5 | 10 | 4 | 14 |
| Randy Mak | 5 | 3 | 7 | 10 |
| Ka Ho Wong “A” | 5 | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| Cheuk Long Ngan | 5 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| Yi Yam | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Pit Hing Zheng | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Yuen Chong Lee “A” | 5 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Chi Lok Chau | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
| Chun Hei Fung | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Yaotian Pang | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Yannick Wong | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Shing Yu Koo | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Tingxun Yi | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Andres Law | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Ryan Wong | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Gaius Kwong | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Goaltenders | ||||
| NAME | GP | GAA | SVS | WIN |
| Tsz Wing Lam | 1 | 0 | 100 | 0 |
| Emerson Keung | 1 | 3 | 90 | 0 |
| King Ho | 5 | 3,61 | 82,8 | 3 |
Mongolia Steady After Return
Mongolia competed at the World Championships from 2007 to 2013, but couldn’t meet IIHF’s requirement of having a regulation-sized indoor rink, which excluded them from 2014 through 2022. They returned in 2023 with a strong showing in Division 4 on home ice in Ulaanbaatar (2nd place) and earned promotion in 2024.
This year, their main goal was survival – which they comfortably achieved with a fourth-place finish. Defender Batu Batorovich Gendunov earned Best Defenseman honors, adding a highlight to a solid campaign.
| Team Mongolia at the 2025 IIHF World Championship Division 3B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NAME | GP | G | A | P |
| Batu Gendunov “A” | 5 | 9 | 11 | 20 |
| Chinzolboo Mishigsuren | 5 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
| Bilguun Ankhbayar | 5 | 3 | 8 | 11 |
| Nyamdavaa Urtnasan | 5 | 2 | 8 | 10 |
| Enkhbat Batbaatar | 5 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| Bilguun Boldbaatar | 5 | 3 | 4 | 7 |
| Tsengel Undarmaa | 5 | 2 | 5 | 7 |
| Lkhagvadorj Davaanyam | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 |
| Munkhtulga Ganbaatar | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Munkhzaya Enkhtur “C” | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Batbayasgalan Bataar | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Enkhamgalan Erdenejav “A” | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Ariunbileg Erdenebat | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Amartur Erdenebat | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Bodikhuu Lkhagvasuren | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Batbaatar Munkhbayar | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Enkhsukh Erdenetogtokh | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jadamba Naranbaatar | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Goaltenders | ||||
| NAME | GP | GAA | SVS | WIN |
| Enkhkhuslen Enkh-Erdene | 5 | 3,41 | 83,9 | 2 |
| Sodbileg Baatarkhuu | 4 | 8,48 | 75,6 | 0 |
The Philippines See Slight Regression
The Philippines joined the IIHF World Championship program only in 2023 but made an immediate impact by winning the Division 4 championship in Mongolia. They finished fourth in their Division 3B debut last year but slipped to fifth in 2025.
While still in the learning phase, the team continues to gain valuable experience and remains competitive in the group. Notably, they managed to steal a surprising point from group favourites North Korea, holding them to an overtime result.
| Team Philippines at the 2025 IIHF World Championship Division 3B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NAME | GP | G | A | P |
| Steven Füglister “C” | 5 | 5 | 5 | 10 |
| Kenwrick Sze | 5 | 6 | 3 | 9 |
| Manvil Billones | 5 | 3 | 5 | 8 |
| Jan Aro Regencia | 5 | 1 | 7 | 8 |
| Patrick Daniel Abis | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Carlo Angelo Tigaronita | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Jorell Crisostomo | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Benjamin Imperial | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Eishner Sibug “A” | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Keneth Stern | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Carl Montano | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Einzenn Ham | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| John Glenn Lagleva | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Carlo Pastrana | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lenard Lancero | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Patrick Syquiatco | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Goaltenders | ||||
| NAME | GP | GAA | SVS | WIN |
| Gianpietro Iseppi | 5 | 8,82 | 77,3 | 1 |
| Irell Perez | 2 | 15,93 | 50 | 0 |
Singapore’s Downward Spiral
Singapore entered the IIHF men’s tournament system a year earlier than the Philippines, making their debut in 2022 with a third-place finish in Division 4. This result was enough for promotion, as four teams moved up that year.
Since then, their trajectory has been downward: fourth in 2023, fifth in 2024, and now sixth in 2025. Their last-place finish means relegation to Division 4 – they’ll be replaced by Uzbekistan, the 2025 Division 4 champions.
| Team Singapore at the 2025 IIHF World Championship Division 3B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NAME | GP | G | A | P |
| James Kodrowski “A” | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Richard O’Brien | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Zephan Tzun Kit Wong | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Joshua Chan | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Ethan Yi Xun Tang | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Bryan Shao Herng Lee | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Cael Juin Hui Chua | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Tat Chung Lam “A” | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Aiden Wei Jun Chan | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Christian Redden | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ryan Wintland | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Christopher Wong | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wee Chew “C” | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Zachary Tzun Hong Wong | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Yong Jia Benedict Qian | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shaw Hsiang Lee | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Goaltenders | ||||
| NAME | GP | GAA | SVS | WIN |
| Joshua Shao Ern Lee | 5 | 12,2 | 77,4 | 0 |
Uzbekistan Joins the Fight in 2026
Next year’s Ice Hockey World Championship Division 3B will feature returning Asian teams – North Korea, Hong Kong, Mongolia, and the Philippines. They’ll be joined by Luxembourg, relegated from Division 3A, and Uzbekistan, newly promoted from Division 4.
Can Anyone Stop Uzbekistan’s Momentum?
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