A TV reporter asked the trailblazing female coach of Team Germany what it was like to be a 'beautiful woman' on a hockey team 'full of handsome men'

• A reporter asked a female coach of Germany's national men's hockey team what it's like to be a "beautiful woman" on a team "full of handsome men."
• Jessica Campbell, an assistant coach for Team Germany, responded: "I don't understand what you're trying to say."

A TV reporter asked a trailblazing female coach of Germany's men's national hockey team what it was like to be a "beautiful woman" on a team "full of handsome men" — and the coach shut down the question.

"What is it like to be on a team when you are a beautiful woman and the team is full of handsome men?" the Slovak TV reporter asked 29-year-old Jessica Campbell after a Wednesday practice session, Finnish national broadcaster Yleisradio Oy reported.

"I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're trying to say," Campbell, an assistant coach who recently made history by becoming the first woman to join the coaching staff of a national team participating in the men's senior IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, responded.

The reporter repeated her question.

"This is my job and profession," Campbell said. "Players do their work. We have a strong relationship with players in hockey, and nothing else is involved."

After the interview, Campbell voiced her disappointment in the question with Team Germany's media manager, Yleisradio Oy reported.

Toni Söderholm, Team Germany's head coach, told Yleisradio Oy that Campbell was hired for her hockey knowledge and praised her coaching abilities and "technical know-how."

Campbell, a former player for the powerhouse Canadian women's national team and a Cornell graduate, said in a feature published by the International Hockey Federation this week that she works with special teams and player development on Germany's men's team.

"I don't know if that stems from coming out of the female game, but my approach is about adding value to individual players for the purpose of the collective team goal," Campbell told IIHF.

"I don't see my role as any different from the other assistant coaches, but I think I maybe have a unique perspective because of how I've studied the game and understand the game and approaches to development," she added.