In the depths of winter, when most of the Himalayan region slows under heavy snowfall and sub-zero temperatures, the frozen expanses of Spiti come alive with the sound of skates carving ice and sticks striking pucks.
From February 7 to 11, 2026, the Spiti Cup powered by Royal Enfield will return for its third season, reaffirming its growing status as one of India’s most meaningful grassroots winter sports initiatives. What began as a modest local competition has evolved into a structured regional tournament that now sits at the heart of ice hockey development in the trans-Himalayan belt. In a region where sport is often shaped by geography and climate, the Spiti Cup has turned winter into an opportunity, creating a platform where remote villages come together not just to compete, but to build shared identity, pride, and aspiration.
A Bigger, Stronger 2026 Edition
The 2026 edition of the Spiti Cup will be the most expansive yet. This season will feature 22 matches, an increase from 18 in the previous year, underlining the tournament’s rapid growth. Teams from five zones Center, Tod, Sham, Pin, and Lahaul will compete across three categories: Senior Men, Women, and Under-18 Boys.
One of the most significant developments this year is the inclusion of Lahaul in the Senior Men’s category for the first time. This expands the competitive footprint of the tournament beyond Spiti Valley, bringing in fresh rivalries and raising the overall standard of play. A team from Sangla in the Kinnaur Valley will also return for a second consecutive year, showing that the Spiti Cup is becoming a magnet for ice hockey communities across Himachal Pradesh.
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The tournament will be played in a league format, with every team facing all others in its category. The side that finishes at the top of the table at the end of the five-day competition will be crowned champion. There will be 10 games in the Senior Men’s category and six games each in the Women’s and U-18 Boys divisions, ensuring balanced competition and maximum exposure for all teams.
While the Spiti Cup is a competitive event, its real significance lies in what happens beyond the final scores. Organised by the Ice Hockey Association of Lahaul and Spiti (IHALS), supported by Royal Enfield Social Mission and delivered in partnership with the Spiti Administration, the Cup is designed as a community-owned development platform.
From players and coaches to families, volunteers, and local leaders, the tournament brings together the entire valley. In a region where distances are long and connectivity is limited, the Cup acts as a rare unifying moment, turning frozen fields into communal gathering points.
A Deep-Rooted Grassroots Structure
One of the defining features of the Spiti Cup is the strength of its grassroots pipeline. The journey to Kaza begins at the village level, with 12 village and cluster-based clubs forming the backbone of the system. During winter, these clubs train for nearly a month, identifying promising players and preparing them for zonal selection. These village clubs feed into zonal teams, which then compete at the Spiti Cup, giving young players a clear and visible pathway from their local frozen ponds to the region’s biggest winter sports stage.
In the lead-up to the 2026 edition, the focus has gone well beyond assembling teams. Coaches from across the region have undergone holistic training under international instructor Darryl Easson, covering technical skills, player development, and game management. These coaches have returned to their communities better equipped to identify talent, design training plans, and prepare players systematically.
Over the past month alone, more than 500 children and young players have participated in structured ice hockey training sessions across Spiti and neighbouring valleys. Crucially, these sessions are run by locally based coaches trained through formal programmes, ensuring that quality instruction is not dependent on outside interventions.
Referee development has also been prioritised. Dedicated officiating workshops focusing on rule interpretation, decision-making, and professional game management have helped create a growing pool of trained referees. This is a vital step in building a self-sustaining competitive ecosystem where matches can be conducted to proper standards year after year.
Expanding the Winter Sports Culture
Ice hockey remains the centrepiece of the Spiti Cup, but the tournament also continues to nurture a wider winter sports culture. Speed skating will once again feature prominently, with competitions across Under-16, Under-18, and senior categories.
This year, skaters from Cheog in Shimla District will participate in Kaza, marking another sign of how winter sports are spreading beyond traditional strongholds. The presence of athletes from outside the valley adds new energy to the event and opens the door to inter-regional exchanges of skill and experience.
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As the Spiti Cup enters its third season, it is clear that the tournament is no longer just an annual event. It has become a living ecosystem one that invests simultaneously in players, coaches, referees, and community structures.
In a part of India where opportunities for organised sport are limited by geography and infrastructure, the Cup offers something rare: continuity. Young players now know that every winter brings not just ice, but a chance to compete, improve, and be seen.
The frozen rinks of Kaza are quietly becoming nurseries of future talent, and with each passing year, the Spiti Cup is strengthening the foundations of Himalayan ice hockey. When the puck drops in February, it will not just mark the start of another tournament it will signal the continuing rise of a grassroots movement that is redefining what sport can look like in the high Himalayas.
