Ice hockey was introduced at the Youth Olympic Games at the inaugural edition in 2012 for both boys and girls.

For the 2012 and 2016 editions a 5-on-5 team competition and an individual skills challenge were open to both genders.

In 2020, the skills challenge was replaced by a mixed-NOC 3-on-3 tournament.

In 2024 the mixed-NOC 3-on-3 tournament was replaced by a 3-on-3 tournament format for the 12th through 28th ranked NOCs.

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