International Ice Hockey Federation

Welcome, Bob & Bobek!

Welcome, Bob & Bobek!

Characters from Czech cartoon serve as mascots

Published 09.09.2014 11:40 GMT+2 | Author Organizing Committee
Welcome, Bob & Bobek!
From the magic hat to the arenas in Prague and Ostrava: Bob and Bobek will be the mascots of the 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship.
The 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, which will be held in Prague and Ostrava May 1-17, already has its mascot. And not only one.

The Organizing committee has chosen two of them. Fans and players will be cheered on by Bob and Bobek, Rabbits from the Hat.

"The mascot is one of the most important things for the atmosphere of the championship and we discussed this topic thoroughly. We wanted a mascot that would be optimistic, that would say something about the Czech Republic and that Czech people would like," explained Tomas Kral, President of the Czech Ice Hockey Association. "We believe that Bob and Bobek are exactly what we were looking for and fans will accept this choice positively."

"The negotiations about the mascot with the IIHF and the marketing company Infront Sports & Media took almost a year, but we are glad we made even the smallest details right. We appreciate the positive attitude of Czech Television as owner of those characters licence," said Marketa Sterbova, General Secretary of the 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship Organizing Committee.

Bob and Bobek are main characters from a popular cartoon about two rabbits who live in a magician's hat. This cartoon first appeared in Czechoslovak television in 1979. The author of Bob and Bobek is Vladimir Jiranek, a well-known Czech artist, illustrator and director of cartoons.

Alex Dowis, artist and stage designer, created the "ice hockey look" of Bob and Bobek.

"We are delighted that the tradition of Czech Television as a broadcaster of the biggest sport events will have something new this time. For the first time, characters from a Czech Television will be mascots. It's clear from the past 40 years that the tales of Bob and Bobek are interesting even abroad. Viewers from more than 20 countries, where these stories have been aired, can confirm that," said Petr Dvorak, Czech Television General Director.

 

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