Tag: HOCKEY

Categories
-Top News India News Sport

‘Fruit of five years of sacrifices’

While the Indian men’s team finished with a bronze, ending a 41-year medal drought, the women’s team narrowly missed third place, going down to Great Britain 3-4 in the bronze-medal match…reports Asian Lite News

Indian men’s and women’s hockey team captains Manpreet Singh and Rampal wrote an open letter to hockey fans across the world, saying that “The historic Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 campaign was the culmination of five years of intense hard work and lot of sacrifices” and that the “love and support we have received” from across the country and even abroad during the Games has been “overwhelming”.

“Through this letter, we wanted to share with you some of the emotions we have experienced over these past three weeks and also let you know just how much your support meant to us during our campaign at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020.

“After a memorable tournament and a euphoric welcome we received upon our arrival in New Delhi on Monday, we have finally reached our respective homes. We must admit that the love and support we have received from across the country and even abroad has been overwhelming to say the least,” the two skippers wrote.

While the Indian men’s team finished with a bronze, ending a 41-year medal drought, the women’s team narrowly missed third place, going down to Great Britain 3-4 in the bronze-medal match.

“The historic Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 campaign was the culmination of five years of intense hard work, dedication and a lot of sacrifices. We knew it wasn’t going to be easy at all, we have had our ups and downs, but we never gave up. We were focused and gave our everything on the field in each game to show that we are fearless and can beat any team in the world.

ALSO READ: India’s pride reaches home

“Our achievement could not have been possible without the constant support and help from the team support staff, Odisha state government, Hockey India, Sports Authority of India (SAI), and the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. We would like to thank each one of them for helping and encouraging us throughout the journey,” said the two skippers.

“We would also like to thank each one of our fans, who have supported both teams at every step of the way. We are aware of you waking up early just to watch us play, you backed us all the way, you celebrated when we won, and you cried with us when we lost. This unconditional support we received from you means the world to us and we hope that you will continue to support us in the forthcoming Olympic cycle too.”

The duo said that their teams were looking forward with renewed vigour to the Commonwealth and Asian Games next year.

“We have big tournaments coming up and while we are now on a break for a few weeks, we are constantly thinking about ‘what next’. The support and encouragement we have received over these past few weeks has motivated us more than ever to bring laurels to the country and we have set our sights firmly on the big-ticket events coming up this Olympic cycle namely the Asian Champions Trophy, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games, Asia Cup, the FIH Hockey Pro League and the FIH Men’s and Women’s World Cup.”

ALSO READ: Olympic hockey: India win bronze, a medal after 41 years

Categories
-Top News India News Sport

Olympic hockey: India win bronze, a medal after 41 years

Pic credits Twitter@Olympics

India fought back brilliantly from a two-goal deficit to score an impressive 5-4 win that reminded its fans of the glory days…reports Asian Lite News

 India defeated Germany 5-4 in a high-intensity goal fest to win the bronze medal in men’s hockey, their first medal in Olympics after a gap of 41 years.

India fought back brilliantly from a two-goal deficit to score an impressive 5-4 win that reminded its fans of the glory days when the Indians were a force to reckon with in World hockey.

Simranjeet Singh scored two goals while Harmanpreet Singh, Rupinderpal Singh, and Mandeep Singh scored a goal apiece for India while for Germany Oruz, Furk, Nicolas Whellen, and Windfeder were on target.

Meanwhile, India’s Vinesh Phogat started her campaign in the Tokyo Olympics women’s 53kg wrestling with a comfortable win against Sweden’s Sofia Mattsson in a Round of 16 bout on Thursday.

Vinesh, who had to withdraw from the Rio Olympics five years ago with a serious injury, overcame Sofia Mattsson, bronze medallist in the Rio Olympics,7-1 on points to make it to the quarterfinals.

Vinesh, the reigning Asian champion, next faces Belarus’ Vanesa Kaladzinskaya, who beat Romania’s Andreea Ana in her opening bout, in the quarterfinals.

The 26-year-old Vinesh will go into that bout with a lot of confidence as she beat Mattsson 13-0 in their only previous meeting at the 2019 world championships.

ALSO READ: India’s pride reaches home
Categories
-Top News Sports

Indian hockey owes it to Odisha CM for its moment of glory

Prior to the Tokyo Olympics, Hockey team custodian Sreejesh PR, who hails from Kerala, referred to Odisha as his “second home” and hailed the state government’s contribution towards developing sports in the country…reports Asian Lite News.

India has scripted history already in Olympics. In a first ever, India has both its men’s and women’s team reach the semi-final of Olympics. For the men’s team it’s a feat after 41 long years. Once undisputed world champions, Indian hockey which produced some legends the world still remembers hit a steady decline. But that didn’t mean that fans of the sport and patrons of the game lost interest. 

The revival of Hockey in India can be rightfully credited to Government of Odisha-led by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. The CM, himself a hockey goal keeper during his school days and an avid sports lover, decided that Odisha would sponsor Indian Hockey.

Odisha CM

In 2018, when the official sponsor of the National teams pulled back, Patnaik placed his bets on hockey. Not only did he support Indian Hockey with finance and infrastructure, the basics for the game was developed from the grassroots in the state as well.

For a country which dominated hockey at the international stage, the results of late haven’t shown the expected dominance. Since making its Olympic debut in 1928, India has won a record eight gold medals. The last one came in 1980. However, history was scripted on August 1 and August 2, and it would not be an exaggeration to give some credit for it to Patnaik.

Prior to the Tokyo Olympics, Hockey team custodian Sreejesh PR, who hails from Kerala, referred to Odisha as his “second home” and hailed the state government’s contribution towards developing sports in the country.

“The world today knows Odisha as the hub of sports. It’s a super sports hub. When we train in Odisha, it feels like our second home. Nowadays if you ask kids in Odisha, they don’t want to be IAS officers or get government jobs. All of them want to play sports because they have now seen that you can have good things through sports,” said Sreejesh.

Patnaik believed in the potential of India’s national team players to bring back the lost glory. After the back to back wins, Naveen’s advice to both the team was, “Keep the momentum going and wish the team best of luck.”

Odisha’s tryst with Hockey has been continuing for some decades now. It has sent some of the best players to the national men’s and women’s teams in the last few decades. Sundargarh district has become the cradle of hockey in India today. While becoming the sports capital of the country, Odisha has added the best hockey infrastructure in the state. The Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar is one of the best hockey stadiums in the world. Odisha is also adding another feather to its hockey infrastructure cap in the form of an international hockey stadium in Rourkela. The Birsha Munda stadium, being built with an expenditure of more than Rs 120 crore, will host the 2023 Men’s World Cup. It is a rare fete for a state or country to host two consecutive World Cups.  The state government has also set up a high performance centre at the Kalinga Stadium Sports Complex in Bhubaneswar for imparting world-class training to budding hockey players.

In the last few years, Odisha has hosted some of the most important events in international hockey including the Men’s FIH Pro League, Men’s FIH Olympic Qualifiers, Women’s FIH Olympic Qualifiers, Men’s Hockey Series Finals, Men’s Hockey World Cup, Men’s FIH Hockey World League, Hockey Champions Trophy. The successful hosting of the 2018 Hockey Men’s World Cup in Bhubaneswar made it possible for is to bag the prestigious event for the second time.

The state government has been contributing generously for the development of the game by building mini stadiums in each and every corner of the state. The state run sports hostels are churning out the bright players of tomorrow. Patnaik’s eagerness to promote the National Game of the country is clearly visible in his efforts in the last two decades. He has also entrusted the development of the sports infrastructure in the able and experienced hands of officers who are leaving no stone unturned.

One of the biggest achievements and contributions of Odisha to Hockey in the recent times is the Sponsorship of the Indian Hockey Teams. Odisha signed a multi-million dollar deal with Hockey India in 2018 to sponsor the National Men’s and Women’s team for five year till 2023. For this, the Odisha government will spend a whopping Rs 150 Crore. For a country obsessed with cricket, this patronisation came at the right time. It has helped immensely in supporting the game at its difficult times.

According to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, “Hockey in Odisha is more than a sport; it’s a way of life, especially in our tribal regions, where children learn to walk with hockey sticks. No wonder, Odisha has produced some of India’s finest hockey players. This is a first where a state government will not just be promoting a sport within its boundaries but will support and nurture the national teams.”

ALSO READ-Hockey should be encouraged more: Akshay Kumar

READ MORE-INDIAN HOCKEY: Two Decades 23 Coaches