2011 IIHF Women's World Championship
The 2011 IIHF World Women's Championships was held in April 2011 in Zürich and Winterthur, Switzerland. This was the 13th women's championship run by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). The United States were the defending champions and defended their title, capturing their third straight gold medal by defeating Canada 3–2 in overtime on a goal by Hilary Knight. IIHF council member Monique Scheier-Schneider presided over the events. Top Division. Preliminary Round. All times local (CEST/UTC+2) Relegation series. "Best of three." All times local (CEST/UTC+2) Scoring leaders. List shows  the top 10 skaters sorted by points, then goals. Leading goaltenders. Only the top five goaltenders, based on save percentage, who have played 40% of their team's minutes are included in this list. Division I. The following teams took part in the Division I tournament which was held in Ravensburg, Germany, from April 11 to April 16. The winner of the group was promoted to the Top Division for the 2012 championships, while the last-placed team in the group was relegated to Division II. On March 29, 2011 Japan withdrew from the tournament due to the 2011 Japan  earthquake. They retained their position in 2012's Division I, and the 5th placed team was relegated. Division II. The following teams took part in the Division II tournament which was held in Caen, France. The winner of the group, Czech Republic was promoted to Division I for the 2012 championships, while the last-placed team in the group, North Korea was relegated to Division III. Prior to the start of the tournament the North Korean national team announced they would withdraw, citing financial reasons. All games against them were counted as a forfeit, with a score of 5–0 for  the opposing team. Division III. The following teams took part in the Division III tournament which was held in Newcastle, Australia. The winner of the group, Netherlands was promoted to Division II for the 2012 championships, while the last-placed team in the group, Belgium was relegated to Division IV. Division IV. The following teams took part in the Division IV tournament which was held in Reykjavík, Iceland, from March 29 to April 4. Division V. The following teams took part in the Division V tournament which was held in Sofia, Bulgaria, from March 14 to March 20. 2011 IIHF