Odisha Chief Minister Naveenn Patnaik announced his sponsorship of Indian hockey for another 10 years after the teams' impressive performance at the Tokyo Olympics. Each player has been awarded 10 lakh and each supporting staff 5 lakh by the state government. "You made us all so proud of your energetic fight in Tokyo. These are very emotional moments for India to witness the revival of Indian hockey. For nearly four decades, hockey fans have been eager to see India win a medal in the Olympic Games". Mr. Patnaik Congratulates to the hockey teams. "The way the whole country has been glued to the screens to watch team games, it's pretty clear that there is more to hockey than just sport. In this pandemic, it's remarkable that our teams have worked so hard despite all the challenges and come out victorious. " Noting that in these times of crisis, the teams have brought smiles on the faces of crores of Indian, Mr. Patnaik said: “We in Odisha are happy that our partnership with Hockey India has led to such a great achievement for the country. I believe Odisha and hockey are destined to become synonymous. Odisha will support hockey teams for another 10 years." After Sahara's sponsorship of Indian hockey ended, Odisha went through its public sector unit, Odisha Mining Corporation, to sponsor national teams (men / women, junior / old) in 2018. The sponsorship was 140 crore for a period of five years. Mr. Patnaik gave13 different awards. While Harmanpreet Singh won the player with the most goals scored, PR Sreejesh was awarded for saving the most goals. Each team presented a framed jersey signed by the players to CM. The government also awarded 50 lakh rupees to Hockey India. "I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Patnaik and the people of Odisha for showing their love and affection for the sport. With your continued support, Indian Hockey looks forward to building on the achievements of the Tokyo Olympics and continue this steady rise to take it back to the elite level where it belongs,” said Narinder Dhruv Batra, president of the Indian Olympic Association. Odisha Sports and Youth Services Minister Tusharkanti Behera, departmental Secretary R. Vineel Krishna and chairman of the Odisha Hockey promotion council Dilip Tirkey were present.Also Read- ICC T20 World Cup 2021 complete schedule: India to face Pakistan on October 24
Indian hockey touched a new peak on Wednesday, making a virtual clean sweep of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) awards, with drag-flick sensation Harmanpreet Singh being crowned the 'FIH Player of the Year' in the men's category, PR Sreejesh winning the 'Goalkeeper of the Year' award and the men's hockey chief coach Graham Reid getting the 'FIH Coach of the Year' award. Former Indian women's hockey chief coach Sjoerd Marijne got the 'FIH Coach of the Year' award in the women's category. The voting-based annual awards had six Indian players and two coaches in men's and women's categories. This is the first time that all nominees from India have won the prestigious awards in their respective categories. Drag-flick sensation Harmanpreet Singh was the top scorer in India's bronze medal-winning performance at the Tokyo Olympic Games. He was nominated for the award along with Belgium's Arthur Van Doren and Alexander Hendrickx as well as Australia's Jake Whetton, Tim Brand and Aran Zalewski. Drag-flicker Gurjit Kaur won the 'FIH Player of The Year' award in the women's category. She was nominated alongside Argentina's Agustina Gorzelany and Agustina Albertarrio. The other nominees for the award were Netherlands' Eva De Goede, Frederique Matla and Maria Verschoor. Sreejesh, who won the 'Goalkeeper of the Year' award, had come up with a career-best performance at the Olympic Games. The other nominees in this category were Belgium's Vincent Vanasch and Australia's Andrew Charter. Goalkeeper Savita won the award for the best goalkeeper in the female category. Savita, who was also the joint-vice captain of the women's team at the Olympics, was outstanding in guarding India's post and played an instrumental role in the team finishing fourth in Tokyo. The other nominees in this category were Great Britain's Maddie Hinch and Argentina's Belen Succi. 2020-21 FIH #HockeyStarsAwards results announced! Olympic Success Wave continues for India with @TheHockeyIndia winning big.A record number of almost 300’000 fans casted their votes for this year's Awards.CONGRATULATIONS to all winners and nominees!— International Hockey Federation (@FIH_Hockey) October 6, 2021In the FIH 'Rising Star of the Year' category for men, Vivek Sagar Prasad won the award for the second consecutive time. He was nominated along with South Africa's Mustaphaa Cassiem and Australia's Sean Findlay. In the 'FIH Rising Star of the Year' category for women, Sharmila Devi won the award with maximum votes ahead of Great Britain's Fiona Crackles and Argentina's Valentina Raposo. Graham Reid got the 'FIH Coach of the Year' award. He was nominated along with Australia's Colin Batch and Belgium's Shane McLeod. Congratulating the award winners, Hockey India president Gyanendro Ningombam said, "This is a great moment for Indian hockey as all our Indian nominees for the FIH Stars Awards have been announced winners. After the historic performances in Tokyo by both the Indian men`s and women`s hockey teams, the support from Indian fans from across the globe has been overwhelming. We thank everyone who supported the nominees by voting for them. "This is a big moment for us and these awards will definitely inspire future generations to take up the sport professionally. On behalf of Hockey India, I congratulate all the award winners and wish them success in their future endeavours."Also Read- Sagar Rana murder case: Delhi court denies bail to Olympic wrestler Sushil Kumar
