 | |
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country |  China |
| City | Harbin |
| Venue(s) | 2 (in 1 host city) |
| Dates | 4–12 April 2008 |
| Opened by | Hu Jintao |
| Teams | 9 |
| Final positions | |
Champions  |  United States (2nd title) |
Runner-up  |  Canada |
Third place  |  Finland |
| Fourth place |  Switzerland |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Games played | 20 |
| Goals scored | 117 (5.85 per game) |
| Attendance | 22,910 (1,146 per game) |
| Scoring leader(s) | Natalie Darwitz (10 points) |
| MVP | Noora Räty |
The 2008 IIHF Women's World Championships were held from 4 to 12 April 2008, in Harbin, People's Republic of China.[1] The games took place at the event's main arena, Baqu Arena. It was the 11th holding of the IIHF Women's World Championship and was organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). The Division I tournament was played in Ventspils, Latvia, at the Ice Hall of the Ventspils Olimpiskais Centrs from 10 to 16 March 2008. The Division II tournament was held from 25 to 30 March 2008 at the Suomen urheiluopisto ('Sports Institute of Finland') in Vierumäki, Finland.
For the 11th-straight Top Division tournament, Canada met the United States in the gold medal match and, for only the second time, the American team defeated the Canadians for the gold medal. This tournament was the first IIHF Women's tournament in which the host nation (in this case, China) failed to medal. Switzerland competed for a medal for the first time, losing to Finland in the bronze medal game.