Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha will host the 35th edition of the Champions Trophy men's hockey tournament to be held from December 13-21 next
year.
The eight-team
elite International Hockey Federation (FIH) event will be held at the Kalinga
Stadium, which is presently under renovation and will be in full shape by June 2014, Hockey India Secretary General Narinder Batra said. He also informed that
Hockey India will host the event in collaboration with Orissa state government.
"It has been
more than a month that we have allocated the Champions Trophy to Orissa and it
will be held in Bhubaneswar," Batra said.
"We have full
support from the Orissa government. The stadium will have two astroturfs, one
is ready and the work on the other is going on. The Orissa government has
assured us that the entire construction work will be completed by June next
year," he said.
Batra said being
medium sized stadium and the growing popularity of the game in Orissa, the
Champions Trophy is expected to draw huge crowds to the ground unlike previous
events at capital's Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium.
Batra also said
that Delhi government was partially to be blamed for low spectator turnouts
during the just-concluded Junior World Cup.
The FIH also gave
thumbs up to Bhubaneswar when a delegation of the world body visited the
Kalinga stadium earlier this year and were impressed with the facilities.
No comments:
Post a Comment