Reports | FIH Series Finals may be shifted out of Bhubaneswar
According to Hindustan Times, there are possibilities of shifting the FIH Series Finals out of Bhubaneswar after the impact of very severe cyclonic storm “Fani” that hit Odisha on Friday. There are speculations that the event, to be played from June 6, might be shifted to Lucknow or Raipur.Â
The very severe cyclonic storm “Fani” that hit the Odisha coast on Friday caused large scale damage to the capital city Bhubaneswar as well. The Kalinga Stadium, which was scheduled to host the upcoming FIH Series Finals, an Olympic qualifier event in June, has also been damaged by the storm. There are reports of the organisers mulling over shifting the tournament out of the city.
“We’ve just three weeks to set things right (in the stadium). Foreign teams will start reaching Bhubaneswar around May 29-30. We need to decide about the venue in a day or two. Even some foreign teams are enquiring about the situation in Bhubaneswar,” an HT source in Hockey India said.
As the hockey stadiums in Delhi, Bengaluru and Pune are not fully ready to host an international competition, the organisers might look towards Lucknow or Raipur to host the crucial competition. Raipur had earlier hosted the Hockey World Series Finals in 2015 while the Junior Men’s World Cup was played in Lucknow in 2016.
“The work on Delhi turf is yet to start, whereas Bengaluru doesn’t have a spectators’ gallery. In Maharashtra, a dispute in the association doesn’t allow HI to conduct the event there. Lucknow and Raipur have the best available turfs right now, and if we can’t repair the Kalinga Stadium within three weeks, we’ll have to shift to one of these places” said the Hockey India official.
However, the secretary of the Chhattisgarh Hockey Manish Srivastava has clarified that there is no proposal from the Hockey India regarding shifting the tournament to Raipur.
“Nobody in Hockey India has approached us. But with support from the state government, we can organise it,” Srivastava informed.
On the other hand, the International Hockey Federation (FIH) is also in contact with the Indian body regarding the organisation of the FIH Series Finals in Bhubaneswar.
“We are in contact with Hockey India to get further information. Our thoughts are with the victims, their families and all people affected by this disaster,” the FIH said to HT.
Kalinga Stadium, which had earlier hosted the Men’s Champions Trophy and Hockey World League Final, was refurbished last year for the Men’s World Cup in December 2018. However, people close to the development in Bhubaneswar have stated that there is significant damage caused at the stadium which will take time to be rebuilt.
“Like in other parts of the city, including the airport and railway station, the Kalinga stadium too has suffered badly. Floodlights, window panes of almost all the rooms, and above all the turf, have got damaged. It will take at least five years to get it back to its original shape,” an HT source in Bhubaneswar said.
