SAI in a tizzy over 103 hockey campers

BANGALORE: Sports Authority of India, South Centre, is working overtime to accommodate a whopping 103-member hockey contingent which will descend upon the garden city on July 1.

The preparatory camp, to be monitored by 12 coaches, will be for a month and will stretch SAI, which already houses equally big numbers from athletics and weightlifting, to the limit.

” Hockey India did not want Delhi to be their training venue and so, the choice was among Bangalore, Patiala and Bhopal. We were reluctant initially but said yes to the camp after Patiala and Bhopal pulled out. The number of campers here is 220 as of now. Once the hockey players join, it will go up to 325,” sources told TOI.

SAI officials got cracking after a meeting on Monday, with clean-up operations of the Polytan turf being commissioned. They are also keen on allowing the hockey players to use the second turf although there is no sprinkler system in place yet. “We will see whether water can be sprinkled manually,” the sources said. “The number is too high for the hockey players to use only one turf.”

The floodlights too will be tested although officials feel they are not powerful enough for matches in the night. “The lights are only 300 lux while we need 1200 lux for matches to be played. But we are setting right the focus and the angle of the lights so that practice can go on in the night.”

The new men’s hostel, inaugurated by sports minister Ajay Maken a few days back, will be readied in a couple of days with beds to be brought from the old hostel for the time being and TV sets installed in every room. “The CPWD will complete its work on the new hostel only by September. Since other camps are also on, we will have to use the new hostel, although it is not fully furnished yet.”

SAI will also hire extra cooks for the duration of the camp as they do not want any slip-ups while dealing with the elite campers.

The South Centre was in the news for the wrong reasons a few years back when women hockey players had complained of inadequate accommodation facilities and poor food.

The men’s hockey camp returns to Bangalore after three years. The contingent comprises 60 core probables and coaches, besides 43 players from the development squad.