National players unlikely to participate in World Series Hockey

Submitted by ITV Production on Feb 29
indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: World Series Hockey (WSH), the initiative by Nimbus Sport and IHF which kicks off today, faces a potentially difficult task of getting in good viewership. That is because national players who were part of the Olympic Qualifiers will probably not take part.

Hockey India (HI) is holding a camp in Bangalore in preparation of the Olympics from 6 March. It has named a list of 48 probables for the camp. Reports indicate that players are putting the country over the league when deciding which way to go.

FIH president Leandro Negre had earlier urged HI and the IHF to join forces. He had said that while players can take part in WSH, it is an unsanctioned event. At the same time, WSH does have international players like Brent Livermore as well as local players taking part.

GroupM ESP managing partner Hiren Pandit said that the situation would create an unnecessary controversy and it would be better if the two bodies resolved their differences. "Viewership would be impacted if players who were part of the Olympic Qualifiers do not take part in WSH," he said. That is because national players who were part of the Olympic Qualifiers will probably not take part.

Hockey India (HI) is holding a camp in Bangalore in preparation of the Olympics from 6 March. It has named a list of 48 probables for the camp. Reports indicate that players are putting the country over the league when deciding which way to go.

FIH president Leandro Negre had earlier urged HI and the IHF to join forces. He had said that while players can take part in WSH, it is an unsanctioned event. At the same time, WSH does have international players like Brent Livermore as well as local players taking part.

GroupM ESP managing partner Hiren Pandit said that the situation would create an unnecessary controversy and it would be better if the two bodies resolved their differences. "Viewership would be impacted if players who were part of the Olympic Qualifiers do not take part in WSH," he said.

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Leandro Negre