BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday launched the trophy tour of FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 here.The chief minister handed over the trophy to the Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey in presence of Sports and Youth Services Minister Tusarkanti Behera, Hockey India secretary Bholanath Singh, Hockey India executive director Cdr. RK Srivastava, Sports and Youth Services department secretary R Vineel Krishna.
Wishing the trophy tour a grand success, Naveen said, “I hope the trophy tour will build excitement for the World Cup across India. We will be hosting 16 teams and the matches will be played in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela. I am sure it will be a memorable World Cup for the teams and the fans.”
In the next 21 days the trophy will travel across West Bengal, Manipur, Assam, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, New Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Chattisgarh before returning to Odisha on December 25.Once back in Odisha, the trophy will tour across all the districts. The trophy will also visit the 17 blocks of Sundargarh, the hockey cradle of the state.The last leg of the tour will be in Rourkela before finally returning to Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar where the finals will be played on January 23, 2023.