To mark the occasion of Riga hosting the Ice Hockey World Championship in May 2006, the Bank of Latvia dedicates a silver collector coin to the event.

Ice hockey is one of the world's fastest games, physically aggressive and even violent sometimes. The men's play and rivalry are a combination of wise team tactics and practicing by the sweat of players' brow, a perfect harmony between physical and moral strength; the outcome of the game, however, may be often decided by mere fortuitousness. Thousands of hockey fans present at the ice arena and comfortably reclining before TV sets are yearning exclusively for the victory of their team. During world championships, this yearning turns into a desire to ascertain their national identity, and hockey transforms into something more important than just a sports event or a game. When with the sounds of the national anthem vibrating in the arena the Latvian red-white-red flags are flying in the spectators' stands, we all know that Latvia, a small country, has rejoined the immense family of hockey players and fans in countries and continents where the game is popular.

Since the day the name of Latvia reappeared on the world map after regaining independence and the rebirth of its national hockey team in 1992 after the silence of 52 long years, Latvia's hockey fans have become well-known to the people far and near. They accompany the national team to the game sites in numbers often reaching 6 000, and no hardship can moderate their willingness to stand by, be it a moment of triumph and victory or of bad luck and defeat. As a singing nation, Latvians would fill the air of any hockey hall with their songs and always remind of the country whose men excel in their spirit of fighting.

The hosting of the Ice Hockey World Championship 2006 in Riga is a significant sports achievement for Latvia. It is a convincing indication that Latvia's national hockey team has earned a well-deserved place in the international hockey elite and that Latvia stands out on the world map of this sport. However, the hosting of the event became possible owing to joint action and common consent of Latvian politicians and organisers of sports life. Moreover, the national game of hockey had to attain an adequately high level to be maintained also in the future. When these factors are coupled with the passion, enthusiasm and unfailing support of the hockey fans, it is time to advance to a qualitatively higher level.