Bhubnaeswar: The state government plans to run a campaign for the Men's Hockey World Cup here in November during the release of Akshay Kumar's Gold, which is scheduled for release on August 15.

Gold is based on India's hockey triumph in the 1948 Olympic Games in London.

Sports minister Chandra Sarathi Behera said they were planning to cash in on the film to garner support for the gala event.

"The 100 day count for the World Cup will start from August 20 and the release of the film will help us garner support for the tournament. A detail plan will be chalked out shortly," he said.

A sports department official said they were initially planning to hold special screenings of the film with players from the national side, but it could not be materialised as the team will be in Indonesia at that time for the Asian Games.

Sources in the department said they would request chief minister Naveen Patnaik to feature in a short film to appeal to the people to visit the state for the event. The short film which will be screened in theatres at the time of Gold's release.

"The tournament will be the biggest in the state and we will launch a massive outdoor campaigning to attract maximum visitors. Besides, we plan to send a delegation to the Women's Hockey World Cup in London in July to have take stock of the preparations," said a department official.