Hockey Calgary officials made a major change to hockey at the Peewee level on Thursday.
Starting in the fall, body checking will not be allowed until the Bantom level.
A five year study makes it clear that kids who body check at the Peewee level are three times more likely to suffer a concussion or major injury.
Peewee players will still learn to body check in practice but will not be allowed to apply that knowledge during a game.
Hockey Calgary says it is important to note that body contact will still be part of the game.
"The key point here is that we're not taking contact out of the game, we're taking body checking and we're also going to introduce new programs inside our practice environment to still continue the development of body checking'" said Todd Millar, Hockey Calgary President.
Hockey has come under fire in recent months for violence, especially with body checking, head shots, and fighting.
The University of Calgary undertook a massive study of NHL concussions between 1997 and 2004 and found a concussion rate of 5.8 for every 100 players or just under two concussions per 1,000 player hours.
Hockey Canada has already adopted a policy of zero tolerance towards hits to the head, enacted far prior to the hit that has sidelined Penguins forward Sidney Crosby nearly the whole 2012 season.
