By TAZEEN QURESHY

In the run up to the Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has announced a new stadium in Rourkela. The stadium will be the largest hockey facility in the country, he has said.

Releasing a video message for the public, the Chief Minister said the stadium will have a seating capacity of 20,000 and all the state-of-art facilities.

Rourkela town in in Sundargarh district of Odisha, which is home of several international hockey talents such as Dilip Tirkey and Sunita Lakra.

The stadium will be a tribute to the nursery of hockey, Patnaik added.

“As a tribute to the contribution of Sundargarh to Indian Hockey, I would like to announce that we will build a new International level Hockey Stadium in Rourkela with a seating capacity of 20,000,” Chief Minister said.

The stadium along with the allied facilities will be developed as a benchmark for other Hockey stadiums around the world. Spread over 15 acres of land, the stadium will be constructed in the Biju Patnaik University of Technology campus, Rourkela.

“The stadium will have all the modern amenities and will offer a unique experience to the public. I hope it will emerge as the best venue for Field Hockey in the World,” he said.

Earlier, a team of FIH officials including its President Narinder Dhruv Batra had visited the city for reviewing the progress of the projects. The team had expressed its satisfaction over the work done so far.

Besides Rourkela, Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar will also be hosting the prestigious tournament. Kalinga Stadium had also hosted the 2018 edition of the Hockey World Cup.    

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