Karnataka and Steel Authority of India Limited from Orissa scored hard-fought victories in their respective boys' quarter-final matches to set up an interesting semi-final in the 35th Junior (under-20) National Hockey Championship, organized by Pune District Hockey Association in association with the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation, under the auspices of the Indian Hockey Federation.
Not only did the Indian High Commission issue visa to the players, the new sponsors have also released nine million Pakistani rupees to cover the team's expenses in the tournament to be held in Bhubaneswar from November 28 to December 16.
Pakistan Hockey Federation had sought a loan from the PCB to send the team to Bhubaneswar and clear the outstanding dues of players.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
After bringing home just two medals from the Rio Olympics, India needs to be realistic in its preparations for the 2020 Tokyo Games and should narrow its focus to a handful of sports, says former All England badminton champion Prakash Padukone. P.V. Sindhu's silver medal in the badminton women's singles and a bronze from wrestler Sakshi Malik at the Rio Games was considered a sorry return for a nation of 1.3 billion people. India have won a total of 28 medals since first competing at the Olympics in 1900 but a government think tank has come up with a strategy it hopes will help the country to 50 medals in 2024, including prioritising 10 sports.
Rafael Nadal has withdrawn from the Paris Masters ahead of the tournament's start on Monday for "personal reasons", the French Tennis Federation announced on Friday.
'The feeling that we were Olympic champions only dawned on us when we reached India.'
Cracking the whip on the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), the Sports Ministry on Friday suspended the Olympic body till the time it reverses the decision to appoint the scam tainted duo of Suresh Kalmadi and Abhay Singh Chautala its Life Presidents.
The team won a four-nation tournament in Singapore, outclassing South Korea in the final.
India captain Sardar Singh has been nominated by the Hockey India for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award.
Hockey coach Ramesh Parameswaran applies for Dronacharya Award
The Indian Hockey Federation is organising two exhibition matches, featuring top players from India and Pakistanl, and a host of film and television artists, in Chandigarh, on September 11.
If you don't have power in a game you are masters of, the world will walk all over you, notes Shekhar Gupta.
The Athletes Commission of the IOA has recommended the national Olympic body to put systems in place to deal with issues of the players "with respect and dignity" in the light of the protest by India's top wrestlers.
Former India captain Mohammed Shahid on Sunday welcomed Dhanraj Pillay's desire to become national hockey coach and asked the federation to take his claim seriously.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
Germany might be the twice Olympic champions defending their title in men's field hockey but top-ranked Australia will be the team to beat at next month's Rio Games.
Come 2024 Paris Olympics, field hockey will be played on a turf that doesn't require watering, International Hockey Federation (FIH) Chief Executive Officer Thierry Weil said, in New Delhi, on Saturday.
The Pakistan Hockey Federation on Wednesday recalled senior players Sohail Abbas, Rehan Butt and Zeeshan Ashraf, who had announced their retirement after the team finished bottom of the heap in the World Cup in India. The PHF also recalled Waseem Ahmed and Salman Akbar for a national camp, from June 20, in Karachi, to prepare for a tour of Europe ahead of the Commonwealth and Asian Games.
Rain spoiled India's party as they struggled in heavy pitch conditions to lose 0-1 to Olympic champions Argentina and crash out of title race in the Hockey World League (HWL) Final, in Bhubaneswar, on Friday.
The PHF is considering inviting the team for a nine-nation tournament in December.
The German has taken up a new assignment with the national team of Egypt.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
Terming the players' revolt as an 'unfortunate' incident, former hockey federation chief KPS Gill on Friday advised the authorities to talk to the national team members and bring them back to the camp.
The International Hockey Federation (FIH) has confirmed on Tuesday an amendment to the 'Rules of Hockey' to clarify rule 13.2 in relation to free hits within five metres of the circle. Following the amendment, the rule now states that at an attacking free hit within five metres of the circle, the ball cannot be played into the circle until it has travelled at least five metres or been touched by a defending player. This amendment, to be introduced with immediate effect, removes the possibility for the attacker to touch the free hit for a teammate to run on to and play the ball into the circle. One additional piece of guidance has also been added in relation to the amendment. Following a time stoppage after the award of an attacking free hit inside the 23 metres area, upon the re-start, all players other than the player taking the free hit must be at least five metres from the ball.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
Prior to the tournament, the team will participate in a four-nation tournament at Bilboe, Spain.
The Indian women team's superb performance at the Asia Cup, particularly their attacking style, has come in for praise from the continent's hockey fraternity who on Saturday said the country deserves to be in next year's World Cup.
Former India captain Pargat Singh on Saturday filed his nomination for the Hockey India president's post, setting the stage for a showdown with HI interim head Vidya Stokes in the July 28 polls in New Delhi.
This was Apurvi's second ISSF World Cup gold of the year followed by a world record score in New Delhi in February.
India is sending a 800-plus contingent, including 572 athletes, to the Asian Games, to be held from August 18 to September 2 in the Indonesian cities of Jakarta and Palembang.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Wednesday
'I believe there will be some treatment (of coronavirus) by September or October this year. We (India) have to plan ourselves thinking that Olympics will be held.'
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Wednesday
Several candidates, including Taranjit Singh Sandhu, the BJP's Amritsar candidate, are promising resumption of India-Pakistan trade via the Attari-Wagah land route.
The 27-year-old midfielder is first from the country to win the accolade since the awards were introduced in 1999.
Hockey greats Vasudevan Baskaran, M M Somaya and Mervyn Fernandis relive India's gold medal-winning campaign at the Moscow Olympics in 1980.
