The Hindu : Sport / Hockey : New Delhi to host World Cup in 2010

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Friday, Mar 23, 2007
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New Delhi to host World Cup in 2010

Special Correspondent

Chennai: India will stage the next hockey World Cup in 2010. A confirmation to this effect came from the FIH after the meeting of the Executive Board in Lausanne.

The Indian Hockey Federation made a bid to host both the junior and men's World Cups in 2009 and 2010 respectively during the last edition of the World Cup at Monchengladbach.

Welcoming the decision and thanking the FIH for agreeing to India's request, the IHF secretary, K. Jothikumaran, said 2010 would be a great year for sport in India since the Commonwealth Games were scheduled in the same year.

The federation is working on the schedule in such a way that there would at least be a six month gap between the World Cup and the Commonwealth Games in which hockey is also a major discipline. This means, the World Cup will come off between February and March.

Fully equipped

New Delhi has been chosen as the venue for the World Cup. Mr. Jothikumaran said that the capital would then be fully equipped to handle a mega event before the Commonwealth Games. He was optimistic of IHF getting three full-fledged stadiums with synthetic pitches and floodlighting. He was hopeful of India regaining its image among the hockey countries as an elite nation by that time.

India hosted the World Cup in 1982 at Mumbai. Only the Netherlands and Kuala Lumpur have organised it twice.

Meanwhile, the FIH has approved the plan to revamp and revitalise hockey in India through the IOC Solidarity Programme. The plan has been chalked out by the former umpire and a senior administrator in FIH, Bob Davidzon, of the Netherlands. The scheme envisages generous funding and restructuring the administrative apparatus so as to provide a thrust to the ongoing programmes, mainly at the sub-junior and junior levels.

The EB meeting at Lausanne also decided to have next year's Champions Trophy at Amsterdam (men) and Monchengladbach (women). The women's World Cup will be held in Argentina in 2010.

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