Today, during the Rabobank Hockey World League Semi-Final in Rotterdam, The Netherlands, Paul van Elten of BDO and Henk Westerlaken, Director of the GHP, presented FIH President Leandro Negre with a EUR 15.000 donation to FIH’s Hockey Development Project in Bangladesh.
The Global Hockey Partners Foundation, Global Hockey Partners (GHP), was established in 2002 when the FIH first sought international sponsorship for hockey. The GHP is made up of the Dutch Hockey Federation (KNHB) and the two initial sponsors, the international accounting network BDO and the Dutch banking group Rabobank.
The FIH Hockey Development Project in Bangladesh will support the national hockey and development program which is being established in consultation with the Bangladesh Hockey Federation. It includes the induction of 300 new children to hockey and the training of 30 coaches and 20 umpires over the next four years.
“Bangladesh is an important hockey nation and is actively participating in regional, continental and international competitions”, said FIH President Leandro Negre. “The current situation, however, is challenging, because many of the hockey centres and schools in the country – while they do have the potential to grow – lack the necessary assistance and support”.
Tayyab Ikram, FIH High Performance & Coaching Manager and manager of the Bangladesh development project, adds: “We are very pleased that with the help of GHP we can take a great step forward in the promotion and development of hockey in Bangladesh”.
FIH CEO Kelly Fairweather thanked the Board of GHP for this generous donation which follows an earlier one made in 2010 when GHP presented the FIH with a EUR 20.000 donation to Hockey Pitch for Zambia, part of the IOC-sponsored Sport for Hope project in Lusaka, Zambia. A multi-purpose Olympic Sports and Educational Centre has since been built there.
