Men's Hockey World Cup 2018: Odisha government gives nod for hosting tournament in Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government on Tuesday accorded in-principle approval to a proposal for hosting the 14th Men’s Hockey World Cup-2018 in Bhubaneswar. “Today’s meeting has in principle decided to organize and host the event. The final and official announcement for the event would be done by Hockey India (HI). The matches would be played for three weeks,” Chief Secretary AP Padhi,who presided over a high level meeting in Bhubaneswar to discuss Men’s Hockey World Cup 2018 preparations, told reporters. Stating that the state government will provide all support and assistance for the successful hosting of the international event, Padhi said the event is scheduled to be held at Kalinga Stadium in the state capital from 28 November to 16 December, 2018. [caption id=“attachment_3271616” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representative photo. Getty Images[/caption] Padhi directed different departments to make all necessary arrangements to make it a world-class event. He further advised to showcase Odisha and its potential in the fields of tourism, culture and sports development. Secretary Sports and Youth Affairs Vishal Dev said, “This is for the third time India will organize the prestigious World Cup and Odisha is proud to get the chance to host it at Bhubaneswar”. India had hosted the Hockey World Cup for first time in 1982 in Mumbai and for second time in 2010 in New Delhi. Dev said around 1,000 players from 16 nations will participate in the World Cup. The winners of five continental championships — Africa, America, Asia, Europe and Oceania — along with 10 highest placed teams of the semi-finals of Hockey World League-2017 will take part. Around 20,000 foreign visitors, including the players and officials from various countries, are expected to reach Bhubaneswar to witness the event. Chief Executive of HI Elena Norman was among others who attended the meeting.