Bhubaneswar: In its constant endeavour to promote and support sports as a way of life, Tata Steel has added another feather in its cap by becoming the Official Partner for the prestigious Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018, which is scheduled to be held from November 28 – December 16, 2018, at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium in the capital city of Odisha. Tata Steel, ranked among the top 10 steel producers in the world, has signed the agreement with the quadrennial event to continue its efforts of promoting sports throughout the country.
As the official partner of Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018, Tata Steel reiterated its commitment to promote a culture of sports as a unifying force both within and outside the country. Tata Steel’s support to sports goes back to its founding days. As early as 1919, Sir Dorabji Tata (son of Tata Group Founder J N Tata) financed four athletes and two wrestlers for the 1920 Antwerp, Belgium Olympics with his own money. In 1924, Sir Dorabji Tata also became the first President of the Indian Olympic Association. Tata Steel has an unsurpassed track record of spotting ambitious talent, honing it and promoting excellence in Indian sports fraternity by providing world-class facility.
Calling sports as a great global unifier, Mr. Sunil Bhaskaran, Vice President, Corporate Services, Tata Steel, said, “Tata Steel has a long and enduring commitment to sports. Over the years, we have created infrastructure for every sports discipline, including hockey, which is popular in and around our areas of operation. Tata Steel is the first private sector company in India to start a hockey academy. Tata Steel is proud to be associated with the Hockey World Cup, which is being held for the first time in Odisha, India. Odisha is fast emerging as a sports destination in our country.”
Ms. Elena Norman, CEO, Hockey India, expressed her delight in welcoming Tata Steel as an Official Partner said, “We are thrilled to announce Tata Steel as an Official Partner. It is an important tournament for everyone involved with hockey, and we are delighted to have the support of the steel-making giant. I would like to thank Tata Steel for associating with the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018 and I hope that they continue to support Indian hockey in the future as well.”
As a committed and long-term patron of sports in India, Tata Steel runs several projects in the country that cover a wide range of sporting disciplines including hockey, football, boxing, tennis, and athletics. Tata Steel along with Tata Trusts has also established the Naval Tata Hockey Academy (NTHA) at Jamshedpur, a world-class high performance residential hockey training facility including an FIH global quality artificial turf with floodlights, international coaches, a nutritionist, and mental and physical trainers. Through this, for the first time in India, a structured, high-quality international level training is being provided at the grassroots level, including playing on artificial turf, truly professionalising hockey at the grassroots.
Tata Steel has introduced world-class football to India through the famous Super Soccer series, which has many accolades to its credit and is now inspiring global dreams with its own ISL team, Jamshedpur Football Club, providing a platform for homegrown talent to shine. With the objective of producing international level athletes, Tata Steel established the country’s first Athletics Academy that provides world-class infrastructure and training facilities. The Tata Archery Academy was established in 1996 in the interest of nurturing and promoting talent in the field of Archery. JRD Tata Sports Complex in Jamshedpur, and the Tata Steel Adventure Foundation headed by Ms. Bachendri Pal, are some of the other sporting institutions supported by Tata Steel.
The Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018 is the 14th edition of the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup and will be the third time that India will be hosting the prestigious competition after having played hosts in 1982 in Bombay and in 2010 in New Delhi. A total of 16 nations will take part in the tournament, which will see each team play three matches during the league stage over the span of 12 days before four cross-over matches take place on 10th and 11th December 2018. The knockout matches will take place on 12th, 13th, 15th and 16th as the teams will look to become the Champions of the prestigious quadrennial event, which was won by Australia in 2014.
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