The 2009 IIHF World Championship rosters consisted of 396 players from 16 national ice hockey teams. Run by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), the 2009 IIHF World Championship, held in Bern and Zurich-Kloten, Switzerland, was the 73rd edition of the tournament.[1]Russia won the championship, the third time they had done so; it was their 25th championship if it is included with those won by the Soviet Union team.[1][2]
Before the start of the championship, each participating nation had to submit a list of players for its roster. A minimum of fifteen skaters and two goaltenders and a maximum of twenty skaters and three goaltenders had to be selected. A country that had selected fewer than the maximum allowed must have chosen the remaining players prior to the start of the tournament. After the start of the tournament, each team was allowed to select an additional two players to their roster, for a maximum of 25 players. Once players were registered to the team, they could not be removed from the roster.[3]
To qualify for a national team under IIHF rules, a player must meet several criteria. He must be a citizen of the nation, and be under the jurisdiction of that national association. Players are allowed to switch which national team they play for, providing they fulfill the IIHF criteria. If participating for the first time in an IIHF event, the player would have had to play two consecutive years in the national competition of the new country without playing in another country. If the player has already played for a national team before, he may switch countries if he is a citizen of the new country, and has played for four consecutive years in the national competition of the new country. This switch may happen only once in the player's life.[4]