Hockey’s world governing body said Tuesday it had snatched the annual Champions Trophy tournament away from India because of an ongoing tussle over who runs the sport in the country. A replacement host for the December 3 to 11 event, which had been scheduled to be held in New Delhi, is expected to be named within a week, the International Hockey Federation (FIH) said in a statement. “We regret that we have to move the Champions Trophy from India,” FIH president Leandro Negre said, adding the dates for the tournament would not change. “It is difficult for teams, organisers and the fans.
But we feel that this is the only way to maintain the integrity of our sport.” India will also lose its place in the eight-nation competition — the second biggest in hockey after the World Cup — with the last berth to be decided by the FIH. Hockey India secretary Narinder Batra said he was “shocked and disappointed”. “We did not have any hint of this happening. They did not even speak to us before taking such a big decision,” said Batra. India and Pakistan were given wildcards for this year’s tournament, which features the world’s top-ranked teams — Australia, England, Spain, Germany, South Korea and the Netherlands.
India have, however, been invited to participate in the Champions Challenge tournament contested by teams not playing in the Champions Trophy, to be held in South Africa in November. In July the FIH voiced concerns over a sports ministry-brokered settlement between two rival bodies, Hockey India (HI) and the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF), which agreed to form a joint executive board to run the game. The FIH said there could be only one governing body for the sport in any country. “It is a fundamental and non-negotiable requirement of the Olympic Charter and the FIH statutes,” the world governing body said.
New Delhi is scheduled to host Olympic hockey qualifiers for men and women in February.
