| According to IHF Honorary general secretary K Jothikumaran,
“The name Indian Premier Hockey League has been jointly developed
with our partners ESS and LSM. The name lends the gravity to the tournament
befitting a game of national importance and a game, which every Indian
would like to see gain national importance. Along with our partners
we are in the process of developing a distinct identity for the league
in terms of a separate logo and so on. The Indian Premier Hockey League
or the ‘PHL’, as we foresee the league will commonly be known as,
will usher in an era of dynamism and popularity for Indian hockey.
The concept of ‘PHL’ has been developed after a lot of deliberations
and discussions over the last two years with our associates ESS and
LSM. Hockey fans can expect an innovative, interesting and first of
kind hockey tournament in India."
"At this juncture, I must congratulate the Hyderabad Hockey
Association for the hard work they have put in for Hyderabad to
be selected as the host city of Tier-I games in the inaugural year.
The state of the art Gaachibawli stadium will be a fitting venue
for the spectacle. I am hopeful that ‘PHL’ will inspire more and
more players to pick up hockey and shine at the international level,"
added Jothikumaran.
ESS Asia vice president event management group and programme development
Richard Young said, "We are proud to be associated with India’s
national game. ESS has taken up the huge task of telecasting the
Indian Premier Hockey League live and exclusive, which will require
a lot of planning and resources. With our experience of producing
popular leagues like the English Premier League, we are confident
of giving Indian viewers a television property, which will be exciting
to watch and a world-class product."
"ESPN Star Sports will be conducting a complete reconnaissance
of the stadium, which is already in great shape, to ensure that
the stadium is ‘telecast-ready’ for the LIVE and exclusive telecast.
We look forward to working with the IHF, the Hyderabad Hockey Association
and the other state hockey associations in making this event a grand
success," he added.
Launched with an objective of developing and popularising hockey
in the country, ‘PHL’ will offer prize money of over Rs 71 lakh.
Kolkata based sports management company, Leisure Sports Management
(LSM), will handle on-ground activities.
LSM chairman and MD S S Dasgupta said, "LSM with its in-depth
knowledge and involvement with the Indian hockey is very confident
that the proposed tournament will be a grand success. This is a
well thought of strategic initiative conceptualised after a lot
of research and hard work. We are committed to offer an international
quality experience for fans of hockey."
The league would be a bonanza for the hockey fans in Hyderabad.
The Hyderabadis will see non-stop action every weekend starting
September later this year. Leading national and some of the best
international players will be seen in action at the ‘PHL’.
Innovations have been introduced in the ‘PHL’ to increase viewer
interest in the game. For instance, each game will have four quarters
of 17 minutes and 30 seconds each, instead of the two halves. New
concepts of time-outs have also been introduced in order to liven
up the game. The winner within the stipulated time will get three
points for each victory while the team winning in the extra time
will share the points 2:1.
Tier I teams in the inaugural year include Bangalore, Chennai,
Hyderabad, Jalandhar and Mumbai. Tier II teams will be Chandigarh,
Delhi, Imphal, Kolkata and Lucknow.
The winner of the Tier I will take home Rs 30 lakh while the runners
up will carry Rs 10 lakh. The winner of Tier II will get Rs four
lakh while the runner up will receive Rs 2.5 lakh. Allocation of
above prizes between players and the respective associations shall
be specified by IHF.
The Indian Premier Hockey League will be hosted at the SAAP Stadium.
Also Read:
ESS
notches up 10 year deal with IHF
|
