100 years of Indian Hockey celebrated

To mark the 100 years of Indian Hockey, Hockey Chandigarh organised a grand Indian Hockey Centenary Celebration at the Sector 42 Sports Complex. Gulab Chand Kataria, Governor of Punjab and UT Administrator, attended the event alongside H Rajesh Prasad, Chief Secretary.

Karan Gilhotra, president of Hockey Chandigarh, appreciated the local players, who won laurels for the city at national and international meets.

“Hockey is India’s proud sporting heritage. The journey that began in 1925 with the formation of the national hockey association has now completed 100 years. It is a matter of great pride that Chandigarh is hosting this historic celebration. Our aim is to connect the younger generation with the golden legacy of Indian Hockey,” said Gilhotra.

Three exhibition matches were played among junior and senior boys’, and girls.

Olympians Rupinder Pal Singh, Gurjant Singh and Dharamvir Singh, as well as current Indian team players Sanjay, Maninder Singh and Vikramjit Singh attended the event. The family members of Rohit, captain of the Indian junior team, were also present.

Addressing the gathering, Kataria said the city had produced several Olympic players who had brought immense glory to Indian Hockey.”I am confident that Chandigarh will continue to play a vital role in the progress and success of Indian Hockey,” he said.

After the celebrations, Hockey Chandigarh announced that it would host Premier Hockey League — a platform to perform for the local and regional talent. The dates and format of the tournament will be announced later.

Kataria launches league logo

To commemorate the completion of 100 glorious years of Indian Hockey, Punjab Governor and UT Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria unveiled the logo of the newly announced Chandigarh Hockey League, which will be held annually with a prize money of ?35 lakh. He also administered the ‘Nasha Mukt Bharat’ pledge to all present.