Indians aim ten first preference votes and with that hopeful of winning a coveted seat in the Executive Board of the field hockey’s global governing body, Federation Internationale de Hockey (FIH). The election for the 21-member body will take place on 21st of this month when the Extra Ordinary Congress of the FIH will be held in Brussels, Belgium. Indian Hockey Federation chief Kanwar Pal Singh Gill is among the five Asians in a field of 23 for ten posts of Executive Members.
Present Secretary General of FIH, Else van Breda Vriesman and European Hockey Association chief Frenchman Alain Danet are locked in a straight contest for the presidentship. If elected, Vriesman, also the president of the Dutch Hockey Association, will become the first women to head the FIH.
Indian camp managers expect an attendance of 75 to 80 of the 120-nation electoral college and claim to have plans to enlist support of at least ten of them who would cast first preference vote in their favour.
As per the new electoral system, all members are entitled to prioritise their choices and the first four women and men contestants who get simple majority of first preference votes will be declared elected. The remaining two seats are open for either sex and their chances of winning would again depend on priority count.
A five-member Indian delegation headed by IHF President KPS Gill will lobby at Brussel for three days before the all important election that takes place on 21st . Amrit Bose, Secretary of the Indian Hockey Confederation has already reached Brussels. Other members of the team include K. Jothi Kumaran, Secretary, IHF, Suresh Sharma, Protocol Officer and Krishna Mech, a close confidente of Gill. They will be reaching Brussels on 19th.
The Indians might sound modest in their approach but their claim has to be taken with a pinch of salt. For, not long ago, the same people suffered a humiliating electoral defeat at the hands of Sultan Azlan Shah of Malaysia. Gill contested against him for the president ship of Asian Hockey Federation in November 1999 only to get four out of 22 votes! That too with the backing of Pakistan with its secretary Mudassar Asghar in its panel.
Pakistan Hockey Federation has fielded veteran M.H. Atif for member. All powerful Azlan Shah is fighting for vice-president. Other Asians in the fray are Japan’s Udea, Korea’s Kim Keun and Anne Esabel of Singapore. Esable is the only women from Asia and as such sure to be elected. Atif, current chairman of Hockey Rules Board is a tall figure in world hockey with a 25–year record of services in both AHF and FIH, besides PHF.
So naturally India does not seem to focus on Asia except Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Though Sri Lanka did not support India in the AHF election, the equation seemed to have changed with Gill becoming security adviser to their government. “He has already spoken to President of Sri Lanka in this matter”, confides an insider. India hopes to harvest the good will it has with countries like Poland, Egypt, Belgium and Australia with whom it has consistent sporting contacts. Since they also have their own candidates, it remains to be seen how much India will be successful in its objective.
Unlike Pakistan’s 8-member delegation that includes such well-known global personalities as Islahuddin Siddique and legendary player Shahbaz Ahmed, Indians have packed their delegation with unknown faces, no one is a former player or coach of repute. Gill in his nomination form has quoted as having played for Dibrugarh District Police Team and he is pitted in a field that includes 4-time Olympian Atif.
Many Committees will also be constituted after the election. Since the chairman of these committees will have voting rights, countries are taking this seriously. India has nominated Jude Felix in place of Pargat Singh for Athlete’s panel, S. Thyagarajan of the Hindu for Media Committee, Kukoo Walia for Umpires Committee, Jothi Kumaran for Development Committee, Dr.Rajpal Singh for Medical Committee and Amrit Bose for Competitions Committee. And, hold your breadth, Gill’s security staff Suresh Sharma for Marketing Committee! However, only player in the list 1994 World Cup captain Jude Felix is not in the delegation. On the other hand Shahbaz and Islahuddin would add the much needed extra edge to their country’s bargaining powers.
For the first time in the history of the FIH, elections will be held down from members to president after the 36th Statutory FIH Congress held last year at Paris dissolved what it called the `unwieldy administrative apparatus’. The then FIH had a 10-member Board and 35-member Council. As per the new scheme, a 21-member Board will replace the two tier system. The new Board will consist of president, secretary, treasurer, two vice presidents, one representative from each continent and on