Odisha to open 22 new hockey training centers for grassroots development

The Odisha government has decided to set up 22 new hockey training centers (HTCs) in the state to nurture hockey talent and provide early exposure to synthetic turfs to the kids playing at the grassroots level.

The HTCs have been set up by the Sports and Youth Services Department (DSYS) in partnership with Odisha Naval Tata Hockey High-Performance Centre.

The Active turfs include Sundargarh (Bonoi, Tangarpalli, Bargaon, Bisra, Lahunipada, Lathikata, Lephripada, Subdega, Balisankara – Tileikani, Balisankara – Sonamara, Nuagaon, Kutra, Gurundia, Kuarmunda, Kukuda), Jajpur (Jajpur town), Sambalpur (Jujumura), and Ganjam (Chattrapur). Four more centers are also set to be operational soon.

Currently, 18 centers are operational and have about 1300 kids who are training on synthetic turfs. Each HTC has two coaches engaged in this development program.

The HTCs have appointed coaches with a background in grassroots development who have received instruction from David John, the director of hockey for Odisha. Together with the Odisha Naval Tata High-Performance Center (ONTHHPC), DSYS has played a key role in preparing junior coaches from the local area to work with young champions from different districts in Odisha.

Club-level tournaments will be held every weekend in the coming months after all the sites are functioning, according to David John, the director of hockey for Odisha. Children will gain from this program because such competitions are popular in nations like the US, Australia, and the UK and have been successful in attracting talent here as well.

Odisha has a significant amount of craze for the sport of Hockey which was on display during the Men's Hockey World Cup in January 2023.