Chennai set to host 2023 Men's Hockey Asian Champions Trophy

Tamil Nadu's capital city Chennai is all set to host the upcoming Men's Asian Champions Trophy Hockey from 3rd August to 12th August announced Hockey India secretary Bhola Nath Singh at a press conference today in Chennai.

The tournament is scheduled to be played at SDAT-Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium.

The seventh edition of the prestigious continental event, which was inaugurated in 2011, will serve as a precursor to the Asian Games hockey competition in Hangzhou, China in September.

Asian hockey powerhouse and three-time champion Pakistan as well as China are yet to confirm their participation in the tournament.

This embarks the return of International hockey to the city of Chennai after 16 years. The men’s Asia Cup hockey championship in 2007 was the last international hockey event that happened in Chennai.

Speaking on the occasion, the HI secretary said," I am extremely grateful to the sports minister of Tamil Nadu who decided to take the initiative of bringing international hockey back to the city. It has been quite a long since Chennai hosted something big in Hockey."

In a media interaction earlier last week, Tamil Nadu sports minister Udaynidhi Stalin said,“ The dates for the event have not been finalized yet but it’ll tentatively be held in the last week of August. Representatives from Hockey India have inspected the SDAT-Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium and suggested a few things to change. We will make all the necessary changes (such as re-laying the astroturf) and get the stadium ready on time."

Asian Champion Trophy will feature the top six hockey teams from the continent competing in a round-robin format. India and Pakistan are the most successful teams in tournament history with three trophies each.