RAJGIR: After successfully hosting the Women's Asian Champions Trophy, Rajgir is all set to host the Men's Hockey Asia Cup next year. The tournament which will be a qualifying event for the 2026 World Cup will be held from August 27 to September 8.
According to Ravindran Sankaran, director general of Bihar State Sports Authority (BSSA), the discussions were held on Wednesday, and they decided to host the event.
"Hockey India has already discussed this with the Department of Sports and BSSA and in concurrence with the government, we have agreed to host the event. So, this proposal and acceptance were today, and we will now have to sign the Mou," said Sankaran on Wednesday.
The tournament, which was last held in Jakarta in 2022 and was won by South Korea, will see eight teams participate including Pakistan. While it does sound exciting, security concerns will be there, but Sankaran is not all worried about it.
"We will take care of it. We have already taken care of the Chinese team, so it won't be an issue," he added.
But there are certain challenges, and he has already planned accordingly to make sure the tournament is an even bigger hit.
"There are three things that are going to happen. One, we'll have another hockey turf. Second, all the accommodations will be inside the sports complex and in and around Rajgir. To be able to do that, we are going to upgrade our hostel facilities to accommodate the few teams and other officials," added the director general of BSSA.
"Third, we will be electing temporary spectator galleries. And once the championship is over, then we will dismantle it."
This will be something similar to what was there in many of the venues of the Paris Olympics in order to make the event as eco-friendly as possible.
