Former Olympians appeal to minister

NEW DELHI: A group of former hockey Olympians have appealed to Union Minister for Railways Mamata Banerjee to grant complimentary rail passes to a couple of members of the 1975 World Cup winning team who were left out under various schemes for this privilege.

“We are taking this opportunity to approach your good self knowing your genuine love for sports and welfare of sportsmen.

“We have been fighting for this case for a just request since 1996 but to no avail. We are once again taking up the case with lots of hope,” said Ajitpal Singh, captain of the World Cup winning team.

Other members of the appeal are Harcharan Singh, Ashok Diwan, B.P. Govinda and Varinder Singh.

Incidentally, Diwan is employed with the Railways and has joined the appeal for the sake of his teammates.

The signatories of the appeal recalled the gesture by former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao during an exhibition match at the National Stadium in 1995 on August 29, Dhyan Chand’s birthday.

The late Prime Minister had then announced that the Arjuna awardees, Olympic medallists and gold medallists of the Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games will be provided free rail travel facility.

The facilities were promptly sanctioned by the government from February 1996 onwards.

The former greats, without belittling the achievements at the Asian or Commonwealth Games level, have argued that a review of the facilities was needed since the World Cup involved competition at the highest level.

“Omission of World Cup winners was due to an oversight,” said the statement.

The appeal pointed out that of the 16 players who were part of the World Cup winning team, nine players had received the passes by virtue of them being members of the bronze medal winning team of the 1972 Olympics.

Three members of the team have since passed away and effectively, the Railway Minister needs to grant just two passes to H.S. Chimni and B.P. Kalaiah, since the other three — Diwan, Onkar Singh and Leslie Fernandes — are employed by the Railways and are entitled for passes.

“We hope to get a positive response,” the appeal concluded.

FIH World Cup 2010 launched; former stars honoured

NEW DELHI: It was a marketing event all the way. The stage saw the presentation of the FIH World Cup, announcement of the title sponsor and a parade of some hockey greats.

There were nostalgic moments too as a short film took the audience on a memory trip of India’s World Cup triumph at Kuala Lumpur in 1975.

The prestigious hockey extravaganza was on Monday officially named the ‘Hero Honda FIH World Cup 2010’ and the announcement came at a glittering ceremony at the Le Meridien, the official hotel for the event.

The top brass of the International Hockey Federation (FIH), the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and Hockey India came together to launch the World Cup which has been projected as a part of the revival scheme of Indian hockey.

India had hosted the World Cup in 1981after having won it in 1975. Some members of the World Cup-winning team were invited, but the prominent absentees were Ashok Kumar, who scored the match-winner in the final, and Aslam Sher Khan, who slammed in a crucial goal in the semifinals. Other players of the 1975 team present were Ajitpal Singh, H.S. Chimni, B.P. Govinda, Ashok Dewan, Harcharan Singh, Pargat Singh and Virender Singh.

The organisers had also thoughtfully invited some past greats like Cdr. Nandy Singh, Raghubir Lal and R.S. Bhola.

Welcoming the gathering, the FIH president Leandro Negre said, “India is one of the most valuable and important members of the FIH family. For the global development of hockey, it is important that Indian hockey should come up and play to its true potential.”

A fillip

The FIH president was convinced that hosting the event would give the game a thrust in India. “I strongly believe that the support of the sponsor will greatly contribute not only to the success of the World Cup but also to the growth of hockey in the country. I am very pleased the World Cup is being held in India, which has the right atmosphere to stage it. The country has a great tradition for hockey and we want families to come and watch. I am looking forward to its success,” he said.

IOA president Suresh Kalmadi looked at the event as a platform to test the organisational aspect for the Commonwealth Games to be held in October next year.

“I promise the FIH that we would have a crack World Cup and we would field a top quality team. Hockey is dear to every Indian sports lover and I am sure the World Cup would go a long way in reviving the game in India,” Kalmadi said.

On the subject of the elections to Hockey India, Kalmadi admitted that it was, “a difficult task to merge the two (men and women) units in states. But we are trying to get the best people forward and hope to hold the elections in six months.”

The FIH president was also hopeful that the elections to Hockey India would be held on schedule as promised.