New Delhi, 22 June: Commencing the Olympic Day celebrations, Hockey India, the governing body for hockey in India, has distributed over 1200 hockey sticks to its permanent member units across different regions in the country, namely: Assam Hockey, Hockey Bihar, Chhattisgarh Hockey, Delhi Hockey, Hockey Gujarat, Hockey Haryana, Hockey Himachal, Hockey Jammu & Kashmir, Hockey Jharkhand, Hockey Karnataka, Kerala Hockey, Hockey Maharashtra, Manipur Hockey, Hockey Odisha, Hockey Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh Hockey, and Hockey Uttarakhand.

Around the world, National Olympic Associations and their members hold special celebrations to mark the Olympic Day. This is a global celebration to remember the founding of the international Olympic Committee and the modern Olympic Movement by Pierre de Coubertain in 1894.

When talking about the Olympics, nobody can miss India’s illustrious record. From 1928-1956, Indian hockey seized every opportunity that came along its path, it was a golden era when we won six consecutive gold medals in the Olympics. Again in 1964 and 1980 the Indian Hockey teams won Olympic gold medals putting India on the world sport map.

As we head for the Rio Olympics this year, there has been a display of terrific performances by the Men’s team at the recently concluded international tournaments which has further reinforced the hopes for a medal win. This year’s Olympic Games are even more special for the country given the Indian Women’s Hockey team qualification after a long wait of 36 years, last participating in the 1980 Moscow Olympics. It is proof of the Indian Hockey team’s passion and dedication and the transformation journey covered by the team.

For the 122th anniversary, Hockey India would like to emphasize the place hockey has in our society and development at grassroots level. The key objective behind this initiative was to foster the spirit of unity amongst all members and to celebrate the spirit of Olympics.

Speaking on the occasion, Mohd. Mushtaque Ahmad, Secretary General, Hockey India, said, “This is an important year for athletes around the world as it’s the Olympic year. While we would like to wish every athlete preparing for the Olympics in India the very best on behalf of Hockey India, we would also like to urge more children and adults to involve themselves in sports for a healthy living. We would also like to thank our Member Units for garnering their support and working towards the welfare of hockey in the country.”