Ice War Diplomat
Hockey Meets Cold War Politics at the 1972 Summit Series
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- $23.99
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- $23.99
Publisher Description
Discover a diplomacy mission like no other in Ice War Diplomat, the behind-the-scenes story of the historic 1972 Summit Series. Amid the tension of the Cold War, caught between capitalism and communism, Canada and the Soviet Union, young Canadian diplomat Gary J. Smith must navigate the rink, melting the ice between two nations skating a dangerous path.
On his first overseas assignment, Smith is tasked with finding common ground and building friendships between the world’s two largest countries. Once in Moscow, he opts for sports diplomacy, throwing off his embassy black tie and donning the blue-and-white sweater of the Moscow Maple Leafs.
Trusted by each side with unparalleled access to officials, coaches and players on both teams, Smith witnesses this unique and epic hockey series that has come to transcend time, becoming a symbol of the unity and clarity that sports can offer. The 1972 Canadian-Soviet Hockey Series will go down in history as a pivotal political event, changing the course of two nations and the world of hockey—the fascinating story in these pages will appeal to history and sports fans alike.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Canadian diplomat Smith debuts with a nostalgic account of the 1972 hockey series between Canada and the Soviet Union. He describes the "ugly bickering, bad feelings and raw emotion" between Team Canada's roster of NHL professionals, who were expected to dominate, and the Soviet "amateurs," who had Politburo backing and home advantage in the final four games of the eight-game series (the first four games were played in Canada). Off the ice, the stakes were even higher, as Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev and Canadian prime minister Pierre Trudeau seized on the series as a way to "move beyond" a strict nuclear containment policy and "improve bilateral relations." Claiming that life as a diplomat in Moscow in the 1970s "was akin to living in an intense pressure cooker," Smith details entrapment ploys by KGB agents, awkward encounters with ordinary Russians, and "blow off steam" as a member of the embassy's hockey and broomball teams. He also recounts negotiations with his Soviet counterparts over everything from press coverage to ice thickness and the criticism Team Canada took for its roster selection. The story gets bogged down by diplomatic protocols, but comes alive when Smith narrates the on-ice action, including Canada's series-clinching win in Game Eight. This is an appealing account of sports diplomacy in action.
