‘HI, IHF should find a solution

Principal Correspondent

The International Hockey Federation (FIH) president, Leandro Negre, on Monday said that the two warring factions, Hockey India (HI) and the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF), should come together in the best interests of the sport in the country.

Negre said the two sides should get rid of their “ego problems” and reach an agreement sooner than later. “We are acting as a mediator. We are listening to both the sides and trying to find a solution. We tried our best to reach an agreement and had very good discussions with both parties,” said Negre at a press conference here.

“We were very close to reaching a solution but there are very small disputes which need to be sorted out. So, we have given both the parties one month’s time to come together,” he said.

Negre said until such an agreement was reached, the FIH would treat the IHF-backed professional league, the World Series Hockey (WSH), scheduled to start from Wednesday, as an “unsanctioned event.”

However, Negre clarified that the FIH did not wish to spike the WSH or penalise the players. “We are not against the concept of the WSH. There is a need for a strong professional league in India. But we can only give sanction to tournaments (domestic or international) organised by HI as FIH does not recognise IHF.”

“The FIH is always there for players, officials and umpires. We do not like to sanction anyone. If a player decides to play in the WSH, he is free. But problems will arise if HI and IHF fail to reach an agreement in a month’s time,” Negre said.