Rourkela, Jan 16 (Representative) FIH President Tayyab Ikram has lauded the Odisha government and its chief minister Naveen Patnaik for their efforts for promoting and propagating the game (hockey) in an “incredible manner”. “I would also like to express my sincere gratitude to the Odisha government, the Indian government and their leadership groups, Chief Minister Naveen Pattnaik for putting together this event so beautifully. The event is a great success not just because of the stadium being built and the infrastructure that supports the event, but because of the way it is transforming the community in Odisha,” Ikram said. Addressing a media conference at the picturesque world class Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium on Sunday night the International Hockey Federation(IHF) chief said the atmosphere was incredible for promotion of hockey and the concerted efforts put in by them towards hosting the Men’s World Cup, which has made an impeccable start. “The FIH Hockey World Cups are getting bigger and bigger and the atmosphere and attendances in Rourkela are proof of that. I want to thank all the journalists who are taking our beautiful game to fans all over the world,” FIH president Ikram said.
“The event is a great success not just because of the stadium being built and the infrastructure that supports the event, but because of the way it is transforming the community in Odisha,” he said. “I have had the opportunity to speak to local people in Rourkela and they wished to thank hockey for how beautiful the coming of the World Cup has made the city. It has created an atmosphere of great festivities and not just that of a hockey tournament,” Ikram said. Talking about the development of hockey around the world global hockey regulating body chief said, “My plan is to speak to all stakeholders and develop hockey with the athletes and fans at the centre of the game. This is the first time FIH has written to all National Olympic Committees and International Federations, and invited their insights. We will launch new strategies and initiatives after listening to them, soon after the World Cup,”He said, “I think we have a robust event calendar with the World Cups, Junior World Cups, Pro League and the new Nations Cup. There have been suggestions from around the world including those from India and Odisha for new events.””We are waiting for formal concrete proposals to start analysing them.
The Nations Cup is in the right spot because we wanted the Pro League to be open to other nations, which is made possible by Nations Cup. We will plan to involve more countries in the next 25 world rankings by adding another level to the Nations Cup, but it is still under discussion,” Ikram said.On the biggest priorities in the next 2 years of his term as President, he said, “The biggest priority for me is to engage with all 140 of our national federations and make sure that FIH is relevant for all of them. We are actively developing strategies that will involve the associations and their athletes, giving them the opportunity to develop.” “Secondly, the betterment of hockey athletes is another important aspect we are working on. We want to give them better opportunities to develop their skills in hockey and also skills that will be useful for them after their playing careers in hockey,” Ikram said.