Raipur: The Indian Men’s Hockey Team who are currently in the city for the Hero Hockey World League Finals 2015, today celebrated constitution day with kids from Raipur city, participating in the Run for Justice, Equality, Fraternity & Liberty. The Run was organised by the Sports & Youth Welfare, School Education Ministry of the Government of Chhattisgarh. The function which saw participation from the city’s school kids.

The function was graced by the presence of Mr. Bhaiyya Lal Rajwade, Minister of sports, Chhattisgarh Government, Mr. Pramod Dubey, Mayor, Raipur, Mr. Ashoka Agarwal, Commissioner, Raipur and Mr. Anil Kumar Rai, Sports Commissioner, Raipur along with the Indian Men’s Hockey Team. The Chhattisgarh government felicitated and welcomed the Indian team who are in the city to participate at the Hero Hockey World League Finals from 27th November – 6th December 2015. The tournament which is the year’s biggest global hockey event will be hosted at the Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel International Hockey Stadium, Raipur. This will be the first time when the city of Raipur will host an international event of such a huge stature and the audience turnout at the recently concluded India – Australia test series only showcased the enthusiasm that the city has for the sport.

“It’s been an amazing experience so far. The audience is just fantastic and very well behaved. Their cheers only encourage us to perform better, and we are glad that with tournaments like this we will inspire the youth in the city to take up hockey in the future. With such a fantastic infrastructure that the city has I am sure it will not be long before we see future stars emerging from the city,” said PR Sreejesh, Vice-Captain, Indian Senior Men’s Hockey Team.

India face Argentina in their first encounter on 27th November just after the grand opening ceremony showcasing the Chhattisgarh folk culture. The opening ceremony which would include cultural performances from folk artists from Chhattisgarh will begin at 1700 hrs (IST) and will be presided over by Dr Raman Singh, Hon’ble Chief Minister, Chhattisgarh and Mr. Balramji Dass Tandon, Governor of Chhattisgarh. The opening ceremony will be followed by India facing 5th ranked Argentina.

This year the Indian men’s team along with Argentina, Great Britain, Canada, Belgium, Australia, Germany and Netherlands will vie for top honours at this global event.

NMDC ltd is the Principal Partner while SECL/CIL and NTPC are the Official Partners for the Hero Hockey World League Final 2015.

About Hockey World League

Hockey World League is a fast-paced and action-packed tournament comprising of four rounds played over a period of two years. The tournament doubles up as the qualifying event for the World Cup and Olympics, hence allows participating country’s gain FIH world ranking points too. Open to all members of FIH the Hockey World League gives every hockey playing nation a unique opportunity to compete with the best in the world and write their own story. The Final round is an 8 team event, for both the men’s and women’s teams. This year the men’s final is being hosted by India from 27th Nov – 6th Dec 2015 and the women’s final will be played at Rosario, Argentina from the 5th – 13thDecember 2015.