Hockey nationals after 5 years

By Mihir Vasavda | Place: Mumbai | Agency: DNA

The much-delayed hockey national championship will finally take place next month in Bhopal after a hiatus of five years, Hockey India (HI) confirmed on Saturday.

This will be the first nationals ever since HI took over from Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) as the sport’s governing body. HI had previously planned to conduct the nationals a couple of times but their attempts failed to materialise. However, keeping in mind the importance of this year – considering that India will be hosting the Olympic qualifiers in February 2012 – HI has finally decided to conduct the nationals from June 10-19 in Bhopal.

Out of the 35 units affiliated to HI, 32 have confirmed participation. “It was imperative to conduct the nationals this year. New probables will be chosen which help us widen the pool of players for the national team,” HI executive director Anupam Ghulati told DNA.

The previous official national championships were held in 2006 in Delhi and Punjab and were conducted by the then governing body IHF. Punjab and Sindh Bank were the champions on that occasion. Ever since IHF was suspended by the Indian Olympic Association in 2008, the national championships have gone for a toss. Between the power struggle between the IHF and HI, the championships were scheduled, rescheduled and cancelled several times.

“We have been playing with more or less the same set of players for the last two-three years. So it is necessary to look out for some new faces who can be tried and tested throughout the year. The champions trophy (in December) and the qualifiers are our main targets and we need a well-balanced side for that. So the championships will surely help,” chief coach Harendra Singh said.