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Tag: IHF

  • ESPN Star Sports introduces third umpire for PHL

    ESPN Star Sports introduces third umpire for PHL

    MUMBAI: The Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) has announced the composition of all the five Tier I teams along with their coaches and managers for the second edition of Premier Hockey League (PHL) next year. ESPN Star Sports (ESS) is IHF’s broadcast partner for the initiative.

    In order to bolster the coverage ESS has announced that special mikes will be introduced for the on-field umpires for the first time in the history of hockey. There will also be a third umpire – a concept that has helped drastically improve the quality of decisions made in cricket.
     
    ESS MD R C Venkateish said, “We are on verge of taking the Hockey broadcast to the next level. We realise that there is a strong need to make the game of Hockey more and more viewer friendly. “

    “Therefore, we decided to give special mobile mikes for the on-field umpires. These mikes will take the hockey viewing experience to a new high as the followers of the game will understand why a particular decision was given by the referee. The introduction of third umpire, mikes will ensure that our broadcast touches a completely different level. Our world class production crew, with some of the finest equipment flown in from our Singapore offices, where we have a state of the art production centre, will ensure that PHL telecast is amongst the best in the world,”adds Venkateish.

    Like last year, each game will have four quarters of 17 minutes and 30 seconds each, instead of the two halves. The winner, within the stipulated time, will get three points for each victory, while the team winning in the extra time will share the points 2:1.

    Speaking on the role of third umpire, PHL consultant Maurits Hendriks, who is also incumbent coach of the Champions Trophy winning Spanish team said, “It is not a secret that hockey will gain immensely with the introduction of third umpire. It has been debated since a very long time and I am glad to note that PHL has once again come forward to
    embrace the challenge. 5 January, 2006 will be a key date in the history of hockey broadcast. We need to introduce the third umpire in a very subtle manner so as to ensure that we do not slow down the game with unnecessary disruptions.”

    “The third umpire will come into play only if the field umpire wants to take a second opinion. In addition, the facility of the third umpire will be limited to Tier I matches only. We will increase the ambit as we go along” added Hendriks.

    11 foreign players have confirmed their participation in the Chandigarh edition of Premier Hockey League (PHL). They include two international captains – Jorge Lombi from Argentina and Mohammad Saqlain from Pakistan. All the 11 foreign players have also been allotted to the five Tier I teams.

    Dilip Tirkey will captain the Hyderabad Sultans.
    Gagan Ajit Singh will lead the Sher-e-Jallandhar. Viren Rasquinha will helm the Maratha Warriors.
    Arjun Hallappa looks to take the Bangalore Hi-Fliers to the victory podium while Rajpal Singh leads the Chandigarh Dynamos.

  • Hockey: ESS, IHF usher in more changes

    NEW DELHI: Unfazed by new sports broadcasting norms announced by the government, ESPN-Star Sports and Indian Hockey Federation today unveiled the schedule for a new season of Premier Hockey League with more innovations thrown in.

    Apart from introducing a third umpire to adjudicate on disputed and doubtful on-field umpiring decisions, a la cricket, PHL now will also have three finals to make the proceedings more attractive for audiences.

    To ensure that more people are able to view the fixtures, Tier I matches will be played in the evening starting the Thursday of each week and running across on Friday, Saturday and Sunday till the end of the league.

    The Indian Hockey Federation (IHF), India’s apex body for hockey management, today said at a press conference that Chandigarh will host the second edition of the PHL starting from 5 January, 2006.

    ESPN STAR Sports, which has been entrusted with the key responsibility of marketing, producing and broadcasting the hockey league for a period of ten years, will showcase PHL live on its network.

    Asked whether ESS’ investments in domestic hockey is likely to get affected by new media norms announced by the government, ESPN India MD RC Venkateish said, “At the moment it doesn’t look like that happening. But in future one
    doesn’t know whether Doordarshan would suddenly get interested in hockey once the event becomes a money-spinner.”

    Earlier this week, the government announced a slew of media-regulated regulations, including a seemingly anti-competitive norm that all listed sports events would have to be shared by private rights holders with pubcaster Doordarshan on a mandatory basis.

    Meanwhile, dwelling on the changes introduced in PHL, hockey federation president KPS Gill said, “The inaugural PHL set new benchmarks as the world took notice of a completely new, revolutionary league. This time we will raise the bar even further with new innovations.”

    The changes in the format unveiled by the IHF include the introduction of the third umpire for the first time in the world of hockey and holding ‘Best of Three Finals’, unlike last year where the winner was decided after a round robin league. The top two teams from Tier I, after the round robin league, will compete in the ‘Best of Three’ finals.

    `Chandigarh Dynamos’, winners of the Tier II league last year, have been promoted to Tier I this year. `Chennai Veerans’, who finished at the bottom of Tier I, have been relegated to Tier II. `Bengal Tigers’, who finished at the bottom of Tier II, have been replaced by ‘Rourkela Steelers’.

    According to Venkateish, “PHL 2005 was a viewing spectacle with comprehensive match analysis, pre and post-match shows and bi-lingual commentary in English and Hindi. We are in the process of finalizing the process of implementing the new concept (third umpire).”

    Maurits Hendricks, the incumbent coach of the Spanish hockey team, has been re-appointed the consultant for PHL. Maurits will provide his valuable inputs to all the participating teams during the league and be responsible for short listing foreign players.

    Kolkata based sports management company Leisure Sports Management (LSM) will handle on-ground activities. Said the company’s CMD SS Dasgupta, “We are currently working on a detailed blue-print to ensure that PHL dons the look of a grand carnival.”

    Like last year, each game will have four quarters of 17 minutes and 30 seconds each, instead of the two halves after rules were tweaked a bit to make the matches more TV friendly.

  • ESS in 3-year deal with IHF for international match telecast

    ESS in 3-year deal with IHF for international match telecast

    MUMBAI: Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) and sports broadcaster ESPN STAR Sports have signed a three year exclusive telecast deal for all international hockey matches, under the aegis of IHF, to be played in India.

    Under the contract, ESS will broadcast and market ‘IHF Hockey Package’, including 102 international matches over the next 3 years. Any other hockey tournament, which the IHF launches in this period will also fall under the purview of this contract and will be telecast exclusively by the channel.

    IHF has announced the tentative schedule of the teams, which will be visiting India over the year. Teams, which might visit India will include South Korea, Malaysia, Spain, Australia, Pakistan, New Zealand and Germany. ESS will telecast 102 international matches including a 5 test series against arch rival Pakistan over the next three years., an official release said.

    ESPN STAR Sports will work on a comprehensive marketing plan to promote ‘IHF Hockey Package’. Leisure Sports Management (LSM), the marketing agency of IHF, has facilitated the deal between the two leading organizations.

    “We are looking at growing the game’s popularity in a very systematic manner. Last year we launched PHL. This year we are taking a holistic approach to market the national team and international hockey better. The entire process of scheduling and then showcasing the hockey tournaments is being systematized. Carrying the process further, we will release the names of countries visiting India well in advance, which will help in better marketing and selling of the tournaments,” said IHF president KPS Gill.

    ESPN Software India MD R C Venkateish said, “Our role in this deal will be more than mere telecasting. Besides continuing to innovate on our current hockey telecast, we will market the hockey players and the sport better. We will leverage our relationships with IHF and hockey players by integrating the discipline much more into our over all marketing programs and specific initiatives like ESPN Learning Grounds for schools, and so on.”

    Tentative IHF schedule for July 2005 – June 2006

    No. Series
    1 India South Korea/Malaysia Tests
    2 4 nation double header
    3 India – Spain/Germany Tests
    4 India – Pakistan Tests in India
    5 India – NZ/Australia Series
  • PHL attracts Pakistan’s Wasim Ahmed, Sohail Abbas

    PHL attracts Pakistan’s Wasim Ahmed, Sohail Abbas

    MUMBAI: The Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) which is the apex body of hockey management in India has announced a significant development concerning next month’s Premier Hockey League (PHL) tourney.

    Pakistan’s former captain Wasim Ahmed and another former player Sohail Abbas have confirmed their participation for the event.

    The event kicks off on 13 January 2005. ESPN Star Sports (ESS) is the broadcast partner. One of the promotional pegs that the IHF is using to push the event is that for the first time in the history of the game Pakistani players of international class will play with their Indian counterparts in the same team.

    IHF president KPS Gill said, “I am very happy to announce the participation of former Pakistan captain, Wasim Ahmed and world’s highest goal scorer Sohail Abbas in PHL. This has been a very positive step and I am sure that this will encourage players from other countries to participate in PHL and make it a successful one.”

    Recently both Ahmed and Abbas announced their retirements from international hockey. Ahmed was Pakistan’s most capped mid fielder with over 13 years of experience. Abbas, the world’s highest goal scorer, redefined, the technique of playing and taking
    penalty corners. He was known as the drag flick, penalty corner specialist.

    As had been reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com PHL will offer total prize money of Rs 7.1 million.. The winner of the Tier I will take home Rs. three million while the runners up will carry Rs one million. The winner of Tier II will get Rs 400,000 while the runner up will receive Rs 250,000.

  • ESS to telecast ‘Premier Hockey League’ for next 10 years

    ESS to telecast ‘Premier Hockey League’ for next 10 years

    MUMBAI: The Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) has announced that the inaugural edition of the Premier Hockey League (PHL) will be played from Thursday, 13 January, 2005 at the Gachibawli stadium in Hyderabad. IHF also announced that ESPN Star Sports will play the pivotal role of marketing, producing and broadcasting PHL for the next 10 years.

    At a media briefing in the capital yesterday, the federation also announced the names of all Tier I and II teams and the names of the captains for the Tier I teams. Earlier this year, the IHF had announced that it would be starting a domestic league with Rs 7.1 million as prize money with an aim to popularise the game in India.

    IHF president KPS Gill announced the names of five Tier I teams and their respective captains, which are as follows:

    1. Jallandhar Sher-e-Jallandhar – Gagan Ajit Singh
    2. Mumbai Maratha Warriors – Viren Rasquinha
    3. Chennai Chennai Veerans – Ignace Tirkey
    4. Hyderabad Hyderabad Sultans – Dilip Tirkey
    5. Bangalore Bangalore High-Flyers – Arjun Halappa

    Tier II in PHL will have the following teams: Delhi Dazzlers, Lucknow Nawabs, Imphal Rangers, Bengal Tigers and Chandigarh Dynamos.
    Expressing a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment, Gill said, “This is the beginning of a land mark journey, of re-capturing the glory of hockey and rebuilding India’s supremacy in the game internationally. The rebuilding has to start at ground level by giving a platform to our players to hone their talent by playing in an active league. PHL will provide that platform. Supported by world’s number one sports network we are well poised to accomplish the challenge ahead of us.”

    Elaborating on the choice of captains, IHF Honorary General Secretary K Jothikumaran said, “Captains for PHL have been decided after lot of debate. Youth, exuberance, association of masses with their respective captains and an eye for future have been the key parameters for their selection. I am confident that the selected five will grab this opportunity with both hands and motivate their teams to fight fiercely for the inaugural title.”

    ESPN Software India Pvt. Ltd managing director R C Venkateish said, “ESPN Star Sports is committed to growing PHL as a sports property and we are bullish about the growth of the league. We believe that PHL, in years to come, will become one of the most important events in India’s sports calendar. We have made all efforts to ensure that PHL is showcased in a manner, which is exciting and involving for the viewers.”

    “We envisage the popularity of PHL to grow as consumers association with various teams grows. Through an innovative promotions campaign we will accelerate the process of consumers adapting teams as their favorites. Keeping the growth of PHL in mind, every single aspect has been well researched starting from team names to team colors to programming values. ESPN Star Sports will be revealing team logos and team colours in an exciting programme in the near future, which will also work as the first step towards building consumer affiliations with teams. High decibel communication campaign for each team will further amplify respective imagery to make the league more involving for the audiences. With all these efforts and support from IHF, PHL is set to become a sporting spectacle,” he added.

    PHL is a result of over three years of hard labour put in by the IHF, ESPN Star Sports and Leisure Sports Management (LSM). LSM chairman and managing director S S Dasgupta said, “LSM has been closely involved with hockey and IHF for over five years and was instrumental in bringing Corporate giants to sponsor the National Teams for over four years. We at Leisure Sports feel it as a matter of great pride to have played a major and key role in the birth of PHL. We have used our experience to provide value in structuring the tournament and working at on-ground logistics for the smooth functioning of the league. It has been a mammoth task and at the same time, it is hugely satisfying that the league is taking off. LSM will continue to work closely with IHF to ensure that the functioning of the league is smooth with the best of facilities being provided to participants and viewers.”

    The month long league kicks off on 13 January, 2005 and innovations have been made in the PHL to increase viewer interest in the game. Each game will have four quarters of 17 minutes and 30 second each, instead of the two halves. New concepts of time-outs have also been introduced in order to liven up the game. The winner within the stipulated time will get three points for each victory while the team winning in the extra time will share the points 2:1.

    The league will have two tiers having five teams each in the first year. Tier I will be called the ‘Premier Division’ and Tier II will be called the ‘First Division’. The League will follow a round robin format with all teams playing each other twice. The winner will be decided on the basis of total points, said an official release.

    PHL will offer a total prize money of Rs 7.1 million of which, the winner of the Tier I will take home Rs 3 million while the runners up will take home Rs 1 million. The winner of Tier II will get Rs 400,000, while the runner up will receive Rs 250,000.

    PHL will also feature players from countries like Pakistan, South Korea, Spain and others. Also interesting is the fact that PHL will be the first sporting platform ever where Pakistani and Indian players will play in the same team.

    ESPN Star Sports has drawn out a comprehensive two level marketing plan to popularise the league. The first part will entail promoting the league nationally so that the anticipation is build before the start of the tournament, whereas the second level will aim at building team loyalty with local level initiatives in the respective team locations.