Odisha govt pledges long-term sponsorship of national hockey teams

State Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik announces 10 more years of sponsorship from the state for national hockey teams.

Odisha’s chief minister stated on Tuesday the state’s intention to continue sponsoring the national hockey teams for 10 more years, beyond 2023.

Speaking on the occasion of the felicitation of the men’s and women’s hockey teams in Bhubaneswar post their remarkable performance at the Tokyo Games, Patnaik said, “We, in Odisha, are elated that our partnership with Hockey India has led to this great achievement for the country. I believe, Odisha and hockey are destined to become synonymous.

“We will continue our partnership with Hockey India. Odisha will support the Indian hockey teams for 10 more years. These are deeply emotional moments for India to witness the revival of Indian hockey.

“For nearly four decades, hockey fans have been yearning to see India grab a medal at the Olympics. The way the entire country was glued to the screens to watch the hockey teams’ matches; it is quite evident there is something more to hockey than just sports.

“In these crisis times, the teams have brought smiles to the faces of crores of Indians. We all should be thankful to our boys and girls.”

The Odisha government had initially signed a ?100 crore deal with Hockey India for sponsoring both the men’s and women’s teams for a period of five years after Sahara India had backed out of their agreement due to legal issues.

The Odisha government has awarded ?10 lakh each to all the players and ?5 lakh each to the support staff of the teams for their performances at the recently concluded Olympic Games. The government also handed five special prizes during the felicitations to both the men’s and women’s team.

The men’s team recipients were: Player with the most goals – Harmanpreet Singh, Player with most goals saved – PR Sreejesh, Player with most assists – Nilakanta Sharma, Player with most defensive tackles – Rupinder Pal and Player(s) with most interceptions – Harmanpreet Singh and Amit Rohidas.

For the women’s team – Player(s) with most goals scored – Gurjit Kaur and Vandana Katariya, Player with most goals saved – Savita Punia, Player with most assists – Rani Rampal and Navneet Kaur, Player with most defensive tackles – Deep Grace Ekka and Player with most interceptions – P Sushila Chanu.

Expressing their gratitude towards the support, Hockey India’s President Gyanendro Ningombam said, “The state of Odisha has been the bedrock of the growth of the Indian Hockey Teams in the last few years. We cannot thank enough the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha Shri Naveen Patnaik and his team for their heartfelt contributions to the evolvement of the sport of hockey in India. Without their infrastructure and astute guidance, it would’ve been very difficult for the Indian Hockey Teams to play the way they did in the Tokyo Games.

“We at Hockey India are absolutely elated about the Chief Minister’s decision to extend the term as Official Team Sponsor for ten more years. This will certainly boost the sport and elevate it to the next level.”