RACICOT GETS LOST IN THE TRANSLATION

On November 1,1999, André Racicot, the sixth Canadian player to join Russian hockey championships, stepped onto the ice for the first time for a warm-up at the St.Petersburgh’s Yubileyny Ice Arena just before the game versus SKA. His appearance brought a loud, continuous laughter from hockey fans. He was terribly surprised by it, but later he got an explanation for this funny reaction. He had the wrong transcription of his name on his new Neftiekhimik Nizhnekamsk jersey. The jersey had the Russian letters, Rakikot, which means if you translate back into English: Rakicat (Raki+cat). Another hockey cat? Isn’t it funny because Canadians already have one well-known cat named Felix Potvin?

Russian hockey fans also noticed his resemblance to a popular French soccer player Christoff Dugaris, who is the 1998 world champion. All of this may be considered as an immediate tribute to Racicot’s hockey achievements and signs of respect for the Stanley Cup Champ.