News for 08 June 2020
All the news for Monday 8 June 2020
Counties Manukau Hockey returns with Hockey Fives Festival
While the start of the Community Hockey season in New Zealand has been delayed due to the COVID 19 situation. Several of the 32 Associations around the country got underway with competitive play over the past weekend.
Counties Manukau Hockey have opened their facilities over the past two weeks to allow Schools, Clubs and Juniors to commence training under strict health protocols. The facility has been a hive of activity with the Community eager to get back onto the turf after the lengthy delay.
Over the past weekend, the Association played host to a Hockey Fives festival for all their Senior Club teams. This opportunity allowed the Community to test out the newly relayed turf as well as tune-up their skills ahead of the opening weekend of Competition which is starting on Friday, June 12th.
Counties Manukau Hockey has three full-time employees on staff with former Vantage Black Stick Tina Bell-Kake heading the team as the Associations General Manager. She is supported by her husband and former Black Stick Mark Kake in the Community and Performance Coach Space and Marie Arthur-Worsop in the role of Grassroots Development. The team of three have been busy during the COVID situation, including taking on several different functions such as building the fast five boards, preparing the facilities for training and several other tasks. The team has come together to ensure that Community Hockey was able to start as soon after the lockdown as safe and possible.
Q – When is Community Hockey starting?
A – We are starting both Junior and Senior Club hockey this coming weekend (June 12th). We initially planned on starting Senior Hockey the previous weekend. However, we felt it was necessary to give the clubs more time to get their teams sorted after the lengthy delay. We are expecting to have a full club season and will be looking to run the season through to the end of September.
Q – How have the Community been responding to hygiene practices?
A – We have been pleased with how the Community has been getting stuck in and getting on with things. We don’t have to remind too many people, and everyone understands the importance of what is happening. It has been long hours for the team, but the support we have received from the Community has been pleasing.
Q – What is the feeling around the Community?
A – It seems like our Community is excited to get back onto the pitch and get started again. We thought that we might have a drop off in numbers and potentially we may do. However, we have the same amount of teams entered; it just might be that these teams have smaller numbers in their squads.
Q – You have been introducing Hockey Fives in your Community. What is the rationale behind that?
A – Before the COVID 19 situation, we were introducing Hockey Fives into our Junior Space. While it took some initial selling to our Community, we feel like we have reached a good compromise which will see U13 players take part in some Hockey Fives for the season as well as some full field 11 aside.
This weekend’s Hockey Fives festival was an excellent opportunity to introduce our parents to this adapted version of our sport, and the feedback that we have received is that some of our Division Teams would love to play this for the full season.
Q – What are the benefits of Hockey Fives for Skill Development?
A – Indoor Hockey is a very similar game and something that we used to play. It’s quick, and there is a lot of exciting action. The modified version allows for all players to get more touches on the ball and become more involved in the games. Players learn different angles and new strategies for passing as they need to adapt to the changing conditions. Goalkeepers play a much more pivotal role in this version, and we have seen that over this past weekend. Scores tend to be a bit higher, and this makes for an exhilarating version of hockey. We know that we have plenty of room to refine the rules and scoring more. We have had great feedback from the Community about the modified version this weekend. We are hoping to run this at different times throughout the year as well as for Summer Hockey in 2020.
We are going to be profiling different Associations around the country this year as we look to profile the beating heart of our sport which is our Community Hockey.
Hockey New Zealand Media release
Former Hockeyroo Garard OAM adds AM to honours
Hockey Australia congratulates former Hockeyroo and dual Olympic gold medallist Renita Garard (nee Farrell) on receiving a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) as part of this year’s Queen’s Birthday honours.
Already an OAM and Australian Sports Medal recipient, Garard was appointed an AM by Australian Governor-General David Hurley AC DSC for her service to hockey and other career pursuits, including as a Director for the 4 Aussie Heroes Foundation.
After making her debut in 1994, Garard was a member of the Hockeyroos teams that won gold at Atlanta in 1996 and Sydney in 2000.
“For Renita to be acknowledged in this way is tremendous, both for what she has accomplished and contributed as a Hockeyroo, and also for her career post playing including as a Hockey Australia Director, a Member of the Executive Board of the Federation of International Hockey and more recently being appointed as the first female Director on the Board of the Queensland Rugby League,” said Hockey Australia President Melanie Woosnam.
“An integral part of that golden Hockeyroos generation during a highly successful period for the team, Renita has been an outstanding role model to aspiring hockey players, young people and female sports administrators.”
“On behalf of the entire Australian hockey community, I thoroughly congratulate Renita on this special accolade and I’m sure I can unequivocally say that everyone associated with our sport is extremely proud of her.”
Hockey Australia media release
A carpenter’s daughter, meet Indian hockey player Rajani Etimarpu who dreams of an Olympic medal
Rajani Etimarpu belongs to a small village Enumulavaripalli in Anantapur district, Andhra Pradesh. Despite being unable to afford proper equipment, her grit and determination led her to play for the national team.
By Nirandhi Gowthaman
Rajani Etimarpu's determination and grit is an inspiration to many.
Not many would have heard of Enumulavaripalli village. It is a small hamlet in the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh. However, many hockey fanatics know about Rajani Etimarpu, the goalkeeper of the Indian national women’s team who hails from this small village.
Rajani comes from a humble background. She struggled during the initial days in the sport, but her grit and determination serve as an inspiration to many.
She studied at ZPH High School, a government school in Nerabailu. Taking advantage of her tall height, Rajani would often play volleyball during the four or five PT periods a week. Sometimes, her PT teacher would ask her to be the goalkeeper for the hockey team as no one else would come forward to be the goalie.
She vividly recalls her farewell function of eight grade in 2004, which led her to start playing hockey. Prasanna Kumar Reddy, the then Secretary of the Andhra Pradesh Hockey Association, spoke at length of the benefits of playing hockey and the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh centre in Tirupati where selections were going to be held for new trainees. Her mother was present at the event and later asked her if she was interested.
“I had definitely developed an interest so I decided to go to the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh in Tirupati, and luckily, along with two of my friends, I also got selected. It was there that I learnt the most about hockey initially,” Rajani tells HerStory.
She would practice religiously – she would play in the morning, head out to the school, and be back at the grounds again after school as well. She did this for three years before moving to Sports Authority of India (SAI), Hyderabad in 2007. That year, she played the Junior National Championships for Andhra Pradesh and made it to the quarter-finals. Her performance in the tournament propelled her to the Junior India camp in 2008 for the first time.
Call up to the national side
Rajani had been a part of the junior national camp thrice but the opportunity to play for the side never emerged. Sceptical and disheartened, Rajani went on a break to Hyderabad to give her exams, when she received an email about open selections for the Senior India camp in Bengaluru. Determined, Rajani went out to Bengaluru to try out. Her hard work paid off when she was selected for the camp, and later the Indian national team.
In 2009, she played her first international tournament in New Zealand against the hosts.
Recounting the experience, she says, “It was one of the best moments of my life, because before that I never really understood the value of playing for the country, and when I came back from that experience and saw how happy my family was, and my name being in the newspapers – it was amazing and just gave me a newfound belief to keep working hard.”
Since her debut, Rajani, now aged 29, has represented the country in 91 matches and has been part of the team at the Rio Olympics 2016, Commonwealth Games 2010, and FIH Women’s World Cup 2010.
Her struggles 
Rajani deep in training before the start of a match.
Though goalkeeping was not her first choice, Rajani continued to take it up seriously when her PT teacher asked her because of her height. Later, it became her choice when she took up playing the sport seriously. Her journey was fraught with the challenges of not having the right equipment.
Her father was a carpenter and her mother, a housewife. It was difficult for them to afford the equipment when she had just started off. She remembers playing her first tour with a very basic kit. Fortunately, some coaches and senior players in the team helped her buy the whole kit. Once she became a regular part of the team, sponsors came in and buying kits became easier, but she remembers that “initially, during the younger days, it was a struggle.”
Through her struggles, she relied on the pillar of support from her family. “My biggest inspiration has been my mother. She has always been there for me, and she has sacrificed a lot for all of us. My father has also been very supportive and I look up to my parents,” she says.
“We are four siblings in total – three girls and a boy – and my parents have helped all of us, each day of our lives, and I can't thank them enough,” Rajani adds.
The Olympics
For Rajani, the Olympic Qualifiers in 2015 count as one of the highs of her over-a-decade long career. The performance in the qualifiers had given Indian women’s team to represent the country at the Olympics after a 36-year wait.
“It was a moment where we all realised how much the sport meant to the nation, and how our performances on the field made our families proud. It was a moment when I realised that everyone in my village, and even in my state, got to know about me, and it earned a huge amount of respect for my parents as well,” says Rajani.
Even though she wasn’t a part of the final 16 at the Rio Olympics, she cherishes the experience and the environment of the Olympic Games Village.
Speaking about the impending Olympic Games in 2021 at Tokyo, she says, “We will be aiming to learn from our experience of Rio in 2016, and will make sure that we perform well. Ten out of the 24 players currently in our Core Probables group had been at the Rio Olympics, so I think we have all gained a lot of experience now, and we can really pose a threat next year.”
The yet elusive Olympic medal, Rajani says, is not only her personal but a collective goal for the team.
“What we (the team) always discuss is to create history, and make sure that we do something extraordinary and leave behind a legacy for years to come. Everyone should remember this team – and that can only happen if we give our best in Tokyo next year,” she adds.
Your Story
Cambridge rejection propelled hockey career, says Howard
By The Hockey Paper
Tess Howard has revealed that getting rejected from Cambridge University as a teenager propelled her to early international hockey as she aims to be one of the game’s greats.
Speaking on the Full of Fire podcast, which aims to inspire young girls, Howard, 21, explained that being turned down from her academic dream made her develop her character.
She said: “Applying for Cambridge University was something that I didn’t think that I would ever do when I was younger, but then I thought, why not? I’m passionate about geography. It’s one of my greatest passions other than hockey – understanding the world.
“So I threw myself into that – I became pretty obsessed – and was seriously almost broken when I didn’t get accepted after my interview, and to be honest I did go into a bit of a dark place which did end up with me on the astro for an extra three hours a day, which is in hindsight probably a good thing.”
Howard, who studied at Durham, added that she plays the sport with her character. “I’ve started to realise that your character is what you’ve been through in your past,” she said. “And those moments that you don’t think correlate, they do massively. So what I’ve learned from it and taken on the pitch, it’s a very personal thing, being rejected.”
Despite early rejections, it has fuelled her desire to become a global great.
She added: “It scares me a little bit saying it but I do want to be one of the best players in the world in one of the best teams in the world.”
The Hockey Paper
Hockey legend Balbir Singh Senior’s antim ardas held in Chandigarh
Olympian Balbir Singh Senior (HT FILE)
The antim ardas of legendary hockey player and triple Olympic gold medallist Balbir Singh Senior, who passed away on May 25 at the age of 96, was held at his daughter’s residence in Sector 36 on Sunday. In view of the Covid-19 outbreak, the ceremony remained a low-key affair with only 15 persons in attendance.
International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach, FIH president Narinder Batra, President Ram Nath Kovind, Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh and sports minister Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi sent in their condolences letters to the family.
Punjab Olympic Association senior vice-president and former DGP Rajdeep Singh Gill and sports writer Principal Sarwan Singh, who has authored the biography of Balbir Senior in Punjabi, paid tributes to the departed soul online.
Dr Rajinder Kalra, a long-time associate of Balbir Singh, recalled the days of 1975 World Cup and shared his memories from the camp to becoming the world champion.
Singh, grandson of Balbir Singh Senior, thanked all those attended the ceremony in person and paid respects online.
Hindustan Times
Batra’s election as FIH president was illegal: IOA VP writes to IOC
IOA vice president Mittal also alleges that Batra had given ‘false declarations to the IOA’ while running for the post of president of India’s National Olympic Committee.
Uthra Ganesan
Narinder Batra is the head of the International Hockey Federation and Indian Olympic Association. - PTI Photo
The internal politics in the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has now gone international. IOA vice-president Sudhanshu Mittal has written to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) alleging irregularities and false declarations by IOA president Narinder Batra in his election to the post.
"Reference is given to Article 10.3 of the Constitution of the IOA (which states) ‘...The representatives nominated by each unit must be members of the executive bodies of such units.’ Mr. Narinder Batra was a representative on behalf of Hockey India in the December 2017 elections of the IOA and voted as a representative on behalf of Hockey India. Since he had already resigned from any office bearer’s post with Hockey India in order to comply with the FIH Statute, there is no possible way that he could be in the executive committee of Hockey India, unless Mr. Narinder Batra has given false declarations and information to the FIH and to everyone else that he has resigned from Hockey India,” Mittal has written.
The squabbling within the IOA has been on for a while now with a series of accusatory mails being exchanged between various factions. This is the first time, however, that the matter has been taken to the IOC. Batra has countered the charge saying he would respond after resuming office later this month (he is currently on home quarantine). Interestingly, it may be noted that Batra became IOA president in 2017 after his nomination for the post was cleared by the then election commission.
However, according to Mittal’s letter, it is his inclusion in the electoral college as a Hockey India executive board member that is under scrutiny. It may be remembered that Batra had been elected president of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) on November 12, 2016 and, as required by FIH rules, resigned as Hockey India president two weeks later. That decision was ratified in the Hockey India Congress on July 25, 2017.
Sportstar