Bhubaneswar: The state government on Thursday became the sponsor of national hockey team for the next five years, the move coming ahead of the Men's Hockey World Cup to be held in the city in November.
Chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday announced the association of the state government with the men and women national teams in New Delhi.
Sports department officials said this was the first time any state government had decided to sponsor a national team. Though the officials remained tight-lipped about the amount of money to be pumped in by the state government, sources said the Odisha Mining Corporation, a state-run PSU, would spend around Rs 20 crore towards various expenses.
Naveen also unveiled the jersey of Team India with Odisha logo. The sponsor's logo features the Konark wheel, famed coastline of the state, the endangered olive ridley turtles, Odissi dance and hockey.
"We are delighted at this association with Indian hockey, and we thank Hockey India for giving us this platform. Hockey in Odisha is more than a sport, it's a way of life especially in our tribal regions where children learn to walk with hockey sticks. We hope that Odisha's association with the national hockey coincides with a golden period for the sports," said the chief minister at the event.
National-level hockey events made their debut in the state in 2014 when Odisha Sports Development and Promotion Company, jointly formed by the Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (Idco) and Mahanadi Coalfields Limited (MCL), bought a state-based franchise Kalinga Lancers in the second edition of Hockey India League.
Bhubaneswar subsequently hosted the Champions Trophy in 2014 and eight-nation Men's Hockey World League Final in December last year. The success of both the international tournaments has presented Bhubaneswar an opportunity to host the 16-nation world cup in November.
International Hockey Federation president Narinder Batra described Bhubaneswar as the sports capital of India. "While Delhi is the political capital, Mumbai the financial capital and Bangalore the IT capital of India, Bhubaneswar is undoubtedly the sports capital of the country," he said in Delhi during the unveiling of the logo and related programmes.
Batra, who is also the Indian Olympic Association president, requested Naveen to build a high performance centre for all sporting disciplines in the state.
The sports department officials said the seating capacity of the hockey stadium at Kalinga sports complex would be increased to 15,000 by the end of July. The state government is expecting a congregation of 20,000 to 25,000 foreign tourists in the city during the world cup.
