Bhubaneswar: The Trophy Tour of FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 officially kicked off in Bhubaneswar on Monday with Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik handing over the trophy to Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey.
Wishing the trophy tour a grand success, the CM said. “I hope the Hockey Men’s World Cup Trophy Tour will build excitement for the World Cup across India. We will be hosting 16 teams and the matches will be played in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela. I am sure it will be a memorable World Cup for the teams and the fans.”
The trophy will travel across 13 states and one Union Territory – West Bengal, Manipur, Assam, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, New Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Chattisgarh – before returning to Odisha on December 25 when tour across all the districts will begin.
The trophy will also taken to 17 blocks of Sundargarh, famed for being the cradle of Hockey.
The last leg of the tour will be in Rourkela before finally returning to Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar where the finals will be played on January 29, 2023.
Minister for Sports and Youth Services Tusharkanti Behera, Secretary General Hockey India Bholanath Singh, Commissioner-cum-Secretary R. Vineel Krishna, Executive Director Hockey India Cdr R.K. Srivastava and officials and hockey players were present.
