"If I manage to become a famous hockey player, I will get involved in developing the sport in Africa," an athlete of Congolese descent, 18-year-old Joë Christophe Mouissou, a forward for the Russian ice hockey club Neftekhimik, told Sputnik Africa about his path in the sport.
The athlete's father is from the Republic of the Congo and came to Russia at the age of 20 to study medicine; Joë Christophe's mother is Russian.
"You just have to try to do what you love, and not what others say or think," the player advised those inspired by his story.
While football is the favorite sport of Africans, hockey could win a place in their hearts, he suggested.
To achieve this, "you have to find people who want to play hockey, build arenas, provide them with uniforms to train them, hire a coach, and open schools like here in Russia," the sportsman said, noting that not only adults should be trained, but also children from a very young age.