Russian jailhouse hockey

Inmates at a prison in Siberia have their own hockey league, set up in an initiative by one of the prison officers.

It has all the hallmarks of a traditional game of ice hockey, but this ice rink is set inside a prison and all the players are inmates.

Habitual offenders in a prison in the Siberian city of Omsk have been granted their own hockey league.

League organiser, Andrei Zuzko, says that the league was created for the prisoner's benefit.

(SOUNDBITE) (Russian) PRISON HOCKEY LEAGUE ORGANISER, ANDREI ZUZKO, SAYING:

"Our goal is to help people to forget for a short while about crimes, prison, detention and to let them express themselves in sport, to show the best they can do. And it helps them to serve their sentences."

Many of the traditional aspects of the sport are maintained, though a tennis ball is used instead of a puck so as to avoid injuries.

The Prison Hockey League not only gives the inmates a chance to get some exercise, but also to burn off some of the stress of prison life.

(SOUNDBITE) (Russian) "SHARKS" PLAYER, YEVGENY GORYANSKY, SAYING:

"First of all it's a great emotional relief - we are waiting for a hockey game, we are preparing for this game throughout the year, it is the highlight of our sports life here and it gives us a lot of positive emotions"

The prison currently has four teams - the 'Sharks', the 'Black Kites', the 'Raptors' and, more appropriately, 'Wanted'.

Fighting on the ice rink is more strictly dealt with than in the American National Hockey League (NHL).

Players who lose it on the rink here and kick, push or hit their opponents will end in the isolation block rather than the penalty box.

Matthew Stock, Reuters.