No risk to India as host, participating team in WC: FIH

New Delhi, Jan 25 (PTI) India's hosting and participating
rights in next month's World Cup will not be affected despite
the indefinite postponement of Hockey India (HI) elections,
the International Hockey Federation said Monday.
The FIH lamented the further delay in the much-awaited
Hockey India elections, which has been pushed back thrice but
assured it would have no bearing on India's chance both as
host and as participant in the mega-event.
"The FIH regrets that there is another delay in the
election process for Hockey India. The Hero Honda FIH World
Cup will take place in New Delhi, India from 28 February-13
March 2010 with the twelve participants as qualified," FIH
Communications Manager Arjen Meijer told PTI.
While granting the World Cup, the FIH had made it clear
that a democratically elected Hockey India with both the men's
and women's wing under one roof must be in place before the
megaevent or else it would be shifted out of the country.
However, the FIH later softened its stand and said that
the World Cup would be held in India but the hosts would be
restricted from participating in it if an elected federation
was not put in place on time.
Incidentally, the Hockey India election has been
postponed thrice, the latest from its February 7 date after
the Rajasthan High Court had put a stay order on its entire
electoral college.
The election of HI was first scheduled for November 18
last year but was later pushed back to January 29 after the
sports ministry had asked it to be deferred as some state
units have raised doubts over the process of affiliation.
But the polls have to be deferred again from its January
29 schedule after the HI failed to give a 21-day mandatory
notice to all the stakeholders of the election process. PTI
SSC