Hockey India has officially defended its decision to switch the national men's and women's hockey teams to saffron jerseys for the upcoming FIH World Cup, citing both technical feedback and the profound symbolic value of the colour.
Key Points
- Hockey India has defended the decision to change the men's and women's national teams' jerseys to saffron for the upcoming FIH World Cup.
- The change was based on technical feedback from coaches and players, as well as the symbolic value of saffron as part of India's National Flag.
- Hockey India stated that jersey colour changes are not unprecedented, citing yellow in 2014 and sky blue in 2018 World Cups.
- The new saffron jersey is intended to "tell a story" and carry "India's pride," symbolising courage, sacrifice, and victory.
- The FIH World Cup is scheduled to take place from August 15 to 30 in the Netherlands and Belgium.
Hockey India, on Thursday, defended its decision, stating that change in national teams' jersey was not a new thing in Indian hockey and has happened in the past as well. The Indian men's and women's hockey teams will be seen in saffron jerseys instead of their traditional blue kits at next month's FIH World Cup in the Netherlands and Belgium.
Rationale Behind the Colour Change
"It may also be noted that changes in jersey colour are not unprecedented in Indian hockey. From time to time, the national team's playing kit colour has been modified as per functional and other requirements," the statement from Hockey India read.
"For instance, during the 2014 FIH Hockey World Cup, the team's jersey colour was changed to yellow and during the 2018 FIH Hockey World Cup the colour was changed to sky blue with a completely different design," it said.
"The present change to saffron was implemented considering both the technical feedback received from the coaches and players and the symbolic value associated with the colour being part of our National Flag," HI added.
Symbolism and Team Pride
Unveiling the new jersey on its social media pages, Hockey India said the design and colour of the jersey is meant to "tell a story" and carry "India's pride" and was finalised after consultations with players and support staff. HI said saffron symbolises courage, sacrifice and victory. The FIH World Cup will run from August 15 to 30.
Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey explains decision
Hockey India President Dilip Kumar Tirkey on Thursday explained the decision to change the Indian men's and women's hockey teams' primary jersey colour from blue to orange, saying the change was suggested by players, coaches and support staff due to visibility issues on the blue hockey turf.
Speaking to ANI, Tirkey said the new jerseys were launched ahead of the FIH Men's and Women's Hockey World Cups, which are scheduled to begin on August 14 and 15, respectively, in the Netherlands and Belgium.
"So this time, the orange colour has been chosen. And yes, I accept that for many years, there was a legacy where Team India used to wear blue. We have played many tournaments, many important tournaments wearing blue... even I played wearing blue. But the change that has been made this time, and this is not the first time; in 2014 as well, I think the team wore yellow, and in 2018 too, light blue was used -- a suggestion came directly from our coaches, supporting staff, players, and team captains," Tirkey told ANI.
Explaining the reason behind the change, the Hockey India president said players and coaches felt that wearing blue on blue turf affected visibility during matches.
"Their suggestion was that on the field, the hockey turf is blue, and the players' playing kit was also blue. So technical visibility during play was affected because of that overlap. Somewhere, they were feeling that issue," he said.
"They suggested two colour options: yellow and orange. It was noted that orange is also one of our national colours from the Indian flag. So orange was chosen and designed accordingly. If after the tournament or in the future the players feel otherwise, we can work again on improving the kit colour," he said.
On whether the jersey colour could be changed again in the future, Tirkey said Hockey India would consider the players' preference.
"If after or during the World Cup, the team or players do not feel comfortable with the orange colour--which was introduced based on their own request--we can definitely change it in the future to a colour that the team prefers," he said.
Tirkey reiterated that the decision was based primarily on visibility concerns and the players' preference.
"There was a specific request from players and coaches. On blue hockey turf, wearing blue jerseys created visual overlap during fast gameplay, reducing contrast and clarity. Secondly, Orange is represented in our national flag. Out of the two options requested by the squad (orange and yellow), orange was selected," he said.
"For this World Cup, the orange kit is designated as the primary jersey, with white as the secondary kit. If required later, adjustments can always be made," Tirkey added.
