Chennai, 6th July 2023: Hon'ble Sports Minister, Govt of Tamil Nadu Thiru Udhayanidhi Stalin chaired a high-level meeting today to take stock of the ongoing preparations ahead of the highly-anticipated Hero Asian Champions Trophy Chennai 2023, scheduled to begin on 3rd August at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium in Egmore, Chennai.
The Government of Tamil Nadu under the leadership of Hon'ble Chief Minister MK Stalin is leaving no stone unturned in ensuring a successful tournament which will witness Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Japan, China and hosts India vie for top honours. The event is expected to draw keen followers as it's a precursor to the prestigious Hangzhou Asian Games in September.
"We had a very fruitful meeting with the Hon'ble Sports Minister of Tamil Nadu Government today in Chennai. We are happy with the progress made in upgrading the stadium to match the international standards followed by FIH and AHF. A brand-new turf is being laid for the tournament and several other facilities within the stadium premise have also been upgraded to amplify the experience for players and spectators," stated Hockey India Secretary General Shri Bhola Nath Singh.
"Under the leadership of Hon'ble CM Thala MK Stalin, The Sports Department led by the dynamic Thiru Udhayanidhi Stalin have gone all-out in their preparedness to host a successful event. Chennai is a vibrant city, with scores of hockey lovers. We expect people to turn up in large numbers and enjoy the matches," added Shri Bhola Nath Singh.
The iconic Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium which hosted the Men's Asia Cup in 2007, where India lifted the title, is undergoing a major revamp. Apart from the main pitch, the 8000+ capacity stadium built in 1995 now houses a new half-court turf that can host the fast-paced five-a-side game in the future. There are several upgrades too that are being made to the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium, which has witnessed several domestic and international matches in the past, with the Tamil Nadu government leaving no stone unturned in ensuring the tournament meets international standards. The players' dressing rooms, operational area, rooms for match officials as well as floodlights are receiving a face-lift to meet the FIH standards.
Hockey India Treasurer Shri Sekar J Manoharan, who is also heading the State Member Unit in Tamil Nadu, was part of the meeting chaired by the Hon'ble Sports Minister today. Expressing his gratitude to the government, Manoharan said, "We are deeply grateful to the Tamil Nadu Government for their efforts in hosting the Hero Asian Champions Trophy Chennai 2023. The officials are proactively working towards ensuring all the facilities are in place before the participating teams arrive in Chennai for the tournament. We also went through the security protocols for the tournament."
Please see attached images from the meeting held in Chennai today.
Hero Asian Champions Trophy Chennai 2023 will be live on Star Sports, Disney +Hotstar. It will also be live streamed on watch.hockey for viewing outside of India.
For more pictures, login to the Hockey India Photo Library:
Click: https://photolibrary.hockeyindia.org/
HOCKEY INDIA TEAM PARTNERS
Odisha (India's Best Kept Secret) – Major Team Partner
Sports Authority of India (SAI)
Shiv Naresh
About HOCKEY INDIA
HOCKEY INDIA (HI) is the governing body with exclusive mandate to direct and conduct all activities for both men and women's hockey in India. It is recognized by the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, Govt. of India as the sole body responsible towards promoting Hockey in India.
Headquartered in New Delhi, Hockey India was established on 20th May, 2009 and is affiliated to the International Hockey Federation (FIH), the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and Asian Hockey Federation (AHF).
Committed to the development of Hockey in the country, Hockey India with the assistance of Sports Authority of India and Department of Sports, Government of India, trains players at sub-junior, junior and senior level. The governing body engages in Coaching the coaches with International Standard certification programs, educates and equips technical officials and umpires to find a foothold in international arena, provides world-class infrastructure and International exposure for the players besides regular international competition. Hockey India has also pioneered in bringing top International hockey events to India such as the FIH Men's World Cup in 2010 and 2018, FIH Champions Trophy in 2014, FIH Junior Men's World Cup in 2016 and 2021, FIH Hockey World League Final in 2017. With its vision to popularize the game and constantly promote it, Hockey India brought the Indian Men's Hockey Team into the top three in the world. Hockey India is also dedicated to getting the Indian Women's Hockey Team into the top three in the world.
Follow us on:
www.hockeyindia.org | Twitter: @TheHockeyIndia | Facebook: Hockey India | Instagram: hockeyindia
About ODISHA
Odisha - the Eastern State of India - is known for its love for Hockey and over the years it has evolved to be the Global Hub of Hockey. The State successfully hosted the Odisha Hockey Men's World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018, followed by the FIH Men's Series Finals Bhubaneswar Odisha, FIH Olympic Qualifiers Odisha, and FIH Hockey Pro League 2020-21. Odisha has previously hosted the Champions Trophy 2014 and the Odisha Men's Hockey World League Final Bhubaneswar 2017. Odisha also hosted the FIH Men's Hockey Junior World Cup in 2021.
Kalinga Lancers, the team owned by the State, were the winners in the Hockey India League 2017. Taking a step further towards realising the dream of restoring the glory of Indian Hockey at the global level, the State is sponsoring the Indian Hockey Teams till 2033.
Odisha also hosted the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023.
Follow us on:
