HC Bloemendaal and Dabang Mumbai come together to enhance the training structure at the grassroot level

• First such partnership in Hero Hockey India League
• Club representatives to conduct clinic for junior players and workshop for coaches in Mumbai
• Dabang Mumbai aims to create a long term grassroot program along with this association

Mumbai: Dabang Mumbai, the newest franchise of the Hero Hockey India League (HIL), has become the first team in the league to enter into a Technical Partnership with Europe-based and one of the most successful club HC Bloemendaal to enhance the grass-root training structure in Mumbai and adjoining regions with an aim to produce future hockey stars for India.

Bloemendaal is one of the oldest club in The Netherlands and has won 13 National titles apart from bagging the EuroHockey Club Championship and Euro Hockey League crowns twice and boasts of legends like Floris Jan Bovelander and three time World Hockey Player of the year Teun de Nooijer.

 DoIT Sports Management (India) Pvt. Ltd. are the pioneers of “Rurban” sports development. The sporting venture aims to improve sports infrastructure at grass-root levels in urban and rural India alike in order to inculcate sporting culture in the country. Keeping in line with the Rurban goals Dabang Mumbai venture is to win hearts of hockey lovers and to promote sports talent and contribute towards development of sports across Mumbai and Western Region of the Country.

Speaking about the partnership, DoIT Sports Management Director Radha Kapoor said, “The partnership with Bloemendaal is the first step of Dabang Mumbai’s promise to contribute substantially in the development of grass-root hockey in Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa and I have no doubt that the partnership will set new standards in identifying and nurturing talent from these three states.”

During their current visit to India, Bovelander, Nooijer and their colleagues are conducting a special clinic with 30 coaches working with school and college teams in Mumbai. The workshop would mostly focus on creating systems to unearth talent and build a coaching structure that can produce many more champions.

Apart from the coaches’ clinic, Bloemendaal representatives would also conduct a clinic for junior hockey players from Mumbai apart from sharing the “BHC way of playing hockey” with the Dabang Mumbai team and providing short-term feedback to improve their performance in the upcoming HIL.

“The partnership with Bloemendaal is all encompassing and aims at bringing the best practices in European Club Hockey to Dabang Mumbai,” said Kapoor, who also is the only women entrepreneur to own a team in the Pro Kabaddi League and Hockey India League.

Hendrik Goeman Borgesius, Chairman, HC Bloemendaal, looked at the partnership as a big opportunity to invest in grass-root talent in the country that has a vast resource of talent.

“Indian hockey players are extremely talented and for years, European teams have looked up to them for the skills they can show with the stick. With Dabang Mumbai reaching out to us for this strategic partnership, we look forward to create a structure that nurtures this natural talent with a structure that produces future stars.”

Dabang Mumbai’s strategic advisor and mentor, Viren Rasquinha, said, “The partnership was a win-win situation for both the clubs as it would only allow for a more structure exchange of training system and even sporting talent in the near future.

“We can learn a lot from them about how to create a structure for a successful club based on a strong talent development program,” he added.

DOIT Sports Management (India) Pvt Ltd

– DoIT Sports Management (India) Pvt Ltd was incorporated as a part of DoIT Creations Group with the vision of promoting sports, athletes, sports facilities and events across India

– The company entered the Indian sports eco-system with its first acquisition in the Pro Kabaddi League 2014 with the purchase of the Delhi franchise – ‘Dabang Delhi’

– DoIT Creations has established the Indian School of Design and Innovation (‘ISDI’) in Mumbai in collaboration with Parsons The New School for Design, New York in 2013

– DoIT recently acquired a strategic stake in the established Business World (BW) magazine

– With Dabang Mumbai, DoIT Sports entered into Hockey India League with the primary focus towards development and growth of Indian hockey

– DoIT Sports is also committed to support women’s sports development programs across the sports demographic dividend of India