New IHF president vows to regain lost glory

Observing that hockey need not lag so much behind cricket in terms of popularity in the country, new president of the Indian Hockey Federation V Dinesh Reddy said he will make every effort to regain lost glory in the sport.

"We want to galvanise the hockey back to its past glory. Hockey is a national game. Of course, cricket will continue to be number one, but it (hockey) should not be lagging behind as much as it is happening now. We want to revive it to its past glory," said Reddy in Hyderabad, on Tuesday.

Asked to elaborate on his plans, Reddy said young talents should be spotted in schools itself and groomed for the big stage.

"We are looking to catch young talent in schools itself, give them coaching and make it attractive for the players to come and play for national hockey.

"We are also looking forward to revive competitions like Premier League Hockey and World Series Hockey," he added.

On the ongoing tussle between the IHF and Hockey India (HI), Reddy, who is also the Andhra Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP), said he is hopeful of clearing the matter during the Indian Olympic Association meeting later this month.

"There are some issues; the matter is sub-judice. There is still some litigation between Hockey India and IHF.

"This 25th there is a meeting of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), which I will be attending along with two other members. We hope to sort out certain issues," he said.

He replied in the affirmative when asked if he would be in favour of a patch-up between Hockey India and the IHF.

"I think we should bring all of them on the same pedestal under the IHF umbrella," Reddy said.