Suniel Shetty to spearhead “Karnataka Lions”

Sporting Ace Pvt Ltd acquires Bangalore Franchise in WSH

22nd November : Yesterday Chennai. Today Bangalore. The franchisee announcements are coming out regularly. the WSH today make known the Bangalore franchise acquired by Sporting Ace Pvt Ltd.

Sporting Ace Pvt Ltd is a part of Zentrum Group and has acclaimed Bollywood hero Suniel Shetty as the Chief Mentor.

Suniel Shetty has been an avid sports enthusiast and is actively associated with organizing several sporting and celebrity events in India.

Suniel Shetty said – “I am extremely proud to spearhead the Karnataka Lions in World Series Hockey. I have been the brand ambassador for Indian Hockey and felt it was about time I took a more active role in creating a global platform for our hockey players to excel.”

Sagar Pol Chowdhury, Managing Director, Sporting Ace Pvt Ltd said – “The Bangalore franchise will be much more than just a profitable venture for us. We are committed to invest in sports and the newly formed entity Sporting Ace will look at promoting multiple sports and help build necessary infrastructure. WSH is the first and most important step in that direction. I am delighted to have Suniel Shetty as the Chief Mentor and his passion for sports is a perfect fit with the vision of our organization”

Yannick Colaco, COO, Nimbus Sport said – “We are indeed proud to welcome Suniel Shetty and Sporting Ace to the WSH family. It is heartening to see the passion for Hockey they bring to the table and I am confident this will translate into an extremely large and loyal fan base for the Karnataka Lions”

The WSH will be held from December 17, 2011 to January 22, 2012 and will involve 200 leading players — Indian and international — who will showcase their talent in 61 matches. It will be a multi-city franchise-based League with players being allocated to the teams based on the internationally accepted and practiced ‘draft’ system.

The inaugural edition of the league will comprise eight teams out of Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chandigarh, Pune, Bhopal, Punjab, Ranchi and Rourkela.

Hockey players, for the first time, will have a global platform to exhibit their skills for which they will be financially rewarded. The legacy created by the planned upgrading of infrastructure across the country will benefit hockey for generations to come.

About Zentrum Group: Zentrum Group is a global player in the field of Energy, Chemicals, Education, Sports, Information Technology, Consulting, Media, & Outsourcing and work extensively with the world’s leading corporate houses, governments, and institutions.

About World Series Hockey:
A joint initiative between the Indian Hockey Federation (“IHF”) and Nimbus Sport, World Series Hockey™ was conceived with the objective of reinvigoration the sport of hockey in Indian and making hockey the “sport of choice” for young Indians. For the first time a significant guaranteed investment into infrastructure and players will give the game a big boost. With a total prize purse of approximately US $2 million, the World Series Hockey™ will be an annual event with a multi city franchise-based model. The inaugural tournament will be played with eight teams across India. . The action packed league of 61 matches featuring 200 players from India and across the world will be televised LIVE across 30 countries on multiple media platform.