Home   The program   Schools   News   In Focus   Quiz   About us   Contact us   Stick2Hockey The One Thousand Hockey Legs program aims to initate 500 school children into the world of hockey. Click to know more about how your school can participate. Bulletin Board   Hockey World Cup - Watch, Report and WIN Contest One Life: Do More OTHL supporter runs to raise funds Fun Filled Activities in Kanpur 150 children relished hockey at Kanpur More news and Visitors' corner... Sign in Username: Password: New user? Sign up here.   Hero Honda Hockey World Cup 2010, Delhi: A lot of prizes to be won! 3 contests related to the World Cup coming up! Check "Bulletin Board" for more details. Watch out this space in the next few days.     In Focus   It felt great, every moment of it Insurance cover for our school children The end of the begining Hockey slogans that was highlighted last week Day 1: Rusty Start for OTHL Second Leg More... Hockey A-Z  A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H  I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P  Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X  Y  Z Asia The Asian continent is regarded as a superpower in the world of hockey. In fact, India and Pakistan have won the Olympic gold for 40 years on a roll! From the year 1928 to 1968, India won six golds and Pakistan two (1960 and 1968). India won the gold again in 1980 (Moscow Olympics) and Pakistan in 1984 at Los Angeles. Even when it comes to women’s hockey, India along with South Korea and China are world champions. Ashok Kumar Son of hockey legend Dhyan Chand, Ashok Kumar is a classic hockey player himself. He is an artistic forward, and relishes scoring goals - he even scored the winning goal in the 1975 World Cup final! Ball For long, leather balls were used in hockey. Nowadays, plastic balls are used. These have indentations all over their surface, to prevent inconsistent speeds on wet surfaces. Interestingly, only white balls are used for matches, though coloured ones are used for practice. Ballal, Ashish A famous goalkeeper, Ashish Ballal hails from Karnataka. He played in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and 1994 Sydney World Cup. But it is his contribution to the Asian Games final match, in 1998, that he is remembered most for. By the end of regulation time, South Korea and India had scored only a goal apiece, resulting in a tiebreaker playoff. Ballal stopped the Korean strokes twice to win us the Asian Games gold after 36 long years. Corner The word "Corner" is an integral part of hockey jargon. Forwards can deflect and score goals from Corners drawn from each flank on the field. Then there are the Penalty Corners or Short Corners. Umpires award these for fouls committed inside the striking circle. At least three players are involved in scoring a Penalty Corner - a Pusher, a Stopper and, a Hitter or Flicker. These days, quite a few goals are scored using Penalty Corners, sometimes as many as four to five per team. Charles Several stalwarts share the name ‘Charles’ – there must be something about the name! Charles Stephen from Punjab, and Charles Cornelius of Tamil Nadu are some of them. While Stephen played in the 1964 Olympics as a forward, goalkeeper Cornelius was the star of the 1972 Olympics. 'D' In hockey parlance, ‘D’ refers to the Striking Circle. This is a semicircular area clearly marked opposite either goalkeeper’s cage. Goals, Penalty Corners and Penalty Strokes can be scored from within these circles only. Dhyan Chand Perhaps the greatest hockey player the world has ever seen, Dhyan Chand was from Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh. He won us three Olympic golds even while we were a British colony. His birth anniversary is celebrated as ‘Sports Day’ in India, when the government presents the Arjuna and Dronacharya awards to meritorious players and coaches. Europe Modern hockey originated from the European continent, where field hockey is a summer sport. In fact, European hockey teams from countries such as the Netherlands and Germany are leaders in the realm of hockey, and are known for their fast-and-furious style of play. A case in point is the 2008 Beijing Olympics where Germany took the men’s hockey gold, while the Netherlands won the women’s event. Els Van Bredea Vriesman Ms Vriesman is the president of the Federation Internationale de Hockey, which is the game’s international governing body. Field Hockey There are different forms of hockey including field hockey, ice hockey, roller hockey and street hockey. What we commonly play in India is Field Hockey, which means it is played on natural or synthetic grounds in the open. So, can we call our hockey players Field Marshals?! Goal Scoring goals is the sole objective of this game! Goals can be scored in three ways - first, Field Goals where forwards outsmart defenders, enter the striking circle and send the ball inside the net past the goalkeeper; second, Penalty Corner Goals, which are scored by converting penalty corners; third, Stroke Goals, where players convert Penalty Strokes into goals from the penalty spot (seven yards from the net), in a one-to-one duel between the player and goalkeeper. Goalkeeper Each team has a goalkeeper inside the net, whose duty is to block the rival forwards from scoring goals. Their position mandates tremendous skill, courage and reflex. India has produced numerous goalkeepers of great calibre like Shankar Laxman who was part of three Olympic gold winning endeavours. Hockey Hockey is India’s national game. We have won numerous gold medals in the Olympics, World Cup and Asian Games. It is played across the length and breadth of our sprawling country. Harbinder Singh This forward was regarded a terror is his times - by his opponents, of course! His fast, accurate and skilful play saw him score countless goals for India. Nicknamed ‘Hurricane’ Harbinder, he captained India during the 1972 Asian Games. Indoor Hockey Hockey is also played inside closed halls, on wooden pitches. The playing field is smaller and the players fewer when compared to outdoor field hockey. Indoor Hockey is very popular in Europe and Oceania, and there are separate competitions for it, such as the Indoor Hockey World Cup. Independent Club Hockey is played in schools, colleges, organisations such as Air India, Indian Oil and Police, and clubs who form and groom teams. Independent Club is one such club located in Delhi. Formed in the 1930s, it produced many players for the national team such as RS Gentle. Jaipal Singh Munda Jaipal Singh Munda was a student at Cambridge University in London when he was selected to lead India’s first Olympic hockey team in 1928. He played as a defender and was known for his sportsmanship. He later plunged into politics, working for the cause of adivasis, and went on to win the parliamentary elections five times from Ranchi. Jawaharlal Nehru Society This Delhi based Tournament Society has been organising five tournaments every year - Sub Junior Nehru Cup, Junior Nehru Cup, Senior Nehru Cup, Junior Girls Nehru Cup and Champions College Cup - in which thousands of boys and girls take part. Kuala Lumpur Malaysia’s capital Kuala Lumpur is regarded as the hockey capital of Asia. Many tournaments are organised here regularly. India won its sole World Cup at Kuala Lumpur in 1975, followed by the Azlan Shah Cup in 1995 and the Champions Challenge Cup in 2001 - lucky venue for Indian hockey! Kaushik Several hockey heroes share the name Kaushik. Jalandhar based Hari Pal Kaushik played in three Olympics, winning two golds and a silver. He was also awarded the Param Chakra for his heroism in the 1961 China War. Another famous figure with the same surname is MK Kaushik, who won the gold at the Moscow Olympics (1980), and then trained India to win the 1998 Asian Games. He then went on to coach the women’s team to their sole Asia Cup victory in 2004. Leonas Leonas, meaning lioness, is what the Argentinean women’s team is called, for their on-field valour and aggression. They won the World Cup in 2002 while one of their star players, Luciana Aymar, has won the prestigious FIH Best Player of the Year award for a record four times. Leslie Claudius This gifted Anglo-Indian was originally a football player. He then chose to play hockey for a chance to participate in the Olympics. So he did in grand style! He was the first Indian to play in four Olympics, winning three golds and a silver. Other four-time Indian Olympians include Udham Singh and Dhanraj Pillay. Michael Kindo Michael Kindo is from Orissa, and played for India as a defender for about a decade during the 70s. He won the Arjuna award in 1972 and is a World Cup gold medalist. National Championship The Indian Hockey Federation organises the prestigious National Championship tournaments annually for senior and junior teams from across the country. The Indian Railways, Punjab, Indian Airlines and Services are leaders at the Nationals. The last edition was held in Punjab in 2006 where Punjab and Sind Bank won the gold. NRIs The Indian diaspora settled in other countries share our hockey heritage. In fact, several play for their adopted countries - Kulbir Bhaura (England), Hardayal Singh (Kenya) and Kuhan Shanmuganathan (Malaysia) are some NRI hockey stars. Olympics Arguably the most coveted sporting glory, Olympics are held once in four years. In the past, hockey has given us several proud moments at the Olympics, including eight gold, one silver and two bronze medals. Unfortunately, India did not qualify for the Beijing Olympics. Oldest Hockey Player India’s Joe Galibardy is the oldest living hockey Olympian. He was a member of the team which won the gold medal at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. He currently lives in London. Penalty Corner Penalty Corners are awarded to a team when the rival team commits a foul inside the striking circle. The entire team can attack while only six players can defend. There are players who specialise in converting penalty corners to goals. Pillay The name of Dhanraj Pillay is almost synonymous with Indian hockey today. He has participated four times each in the Olympics, World Cup and Asian Games, and led India to win the Asian Games gold in 1998 and Asia Cup gold in 2003. Vikram Pillay, also from Pune, though not related to Dhanraj, is another star player, who won the Junior World Cup in 2001 and Asia Cup in 2003. Queens of hockey Women’s hockey is also very popular in India. Our girls won the gold in the 1982 Asian Games. A special mention must be made of Rajbir Rai, then only 16, who scored around 30 goals during the tournament. Pritam Rani Thakran, Sita Mehta, Surajlata Devi, Jyoti Sunita Kullu and Sumrai Tete were part of the Commonwealth Games gold winning team in 2002. Interestingly, the super hit film Chak De! India, was based on this very win. Surinder Kaur is the current Indian captain. Rink Hockey This is an entertaining form of hockey played on small grounds. This version of hockey is good for beginners and a great way to sharpen one’s skills. Rink hockey is popular in the Bandra area of Mumbai. Sandeep Singh Sandeep Singh is India’s ace drag-flicker. He scored ten goals in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in 2008 where India won the silver. He plays for Chandigarh Dynamos in the Premier Hockey League. Synthetic Turf For long, hockey was played on natural grass grounds. However, since 1976, international hockey has been played only on exotic synthetic turfs. But teams continue to play on other surfaces at the domestic level. India has about 40 synthetic turf grounds. Tribals The tribal belt covering the states of Orissa and Jhakhand has yielded several great hockey players. Although the youth there do not have access to facilities, their determination to excel helps them overcome all obstacles. They are endowed with a natural flair and hence play the game with panache. Present day tribal stars in the Indian team include Dilip Tirkey, Iganace Tirkey, Bimal Lakra and Prabodh Tirkey. Umpires Referees of hockey matches are called umpires. Two umpires officiate in a match, each standing in their own half. Umpires indicate their decisions through standard signs. For instance, if they indicate both hands towards the striking circle while blowing the whistle, it means a goal has been scored. Satinder Sharma is a famous Indian umpire and has officiated in the Beijing Olympics. Victories Indians have had great victories in the recent past. In 2003, India won the Asia Cup and the Afro-Asian Games, defeating Pakistan on both occasions. Indian juniors won the Asia Cup in 2004 and 2008. Recently, India’s greatest victory is of course, winning the Junior World Cup in 2001 at Hobart, Australia, where we defeated Argentina 6-1 in the final match. Deepak Thakur scored a hat-trick in the same match. Vivek Singh Vivek Singh, from Varanasi, is a great midfield player. He died in 2004 due to cancer. William Xalxo Young Xalxo is an upcoming player from Orissa. Electricity has not touched his hometown and yet, with determination and perseverance, he earned a place in the Air India Academy at Delhi before being selected for the Athens Olympics. Yard In hockey, distances are measured by yards. The line that separates the midfield is called the 25-yard line. The hockey ground is 100 yards long and 80 yards wide. Yellow Card Umpires flash the Yellow Card to send out errant players out of the field for specific time intervals such as 5 or 10 minutes, as a measure of punishment. Hence, players are always watchful so as not to commit any mistakes! The Red Card is issued for more serious offences and excludes a player from the rest of the game, without substitution. Zafar Iqbal Zafar Iqbal was a much feared left-winger. He captained India at the 1982 Asian Games and the 1984 Olympics.   One thousand Hockey Legs is a project of Hockey Citizen Group. Read our vision and mission statement.   © 2008 stick2hockey.com. All rights reserved.