Wednesday, April 6, 2011

First Bharat Ratna should go to Dhyan Chand


First Bharat Ratna should go to Dhyan Chand---- By K. Arumugam( stick2hockey.com)

The time for sports lovers at large including cricket fans, has come. There have been voices -- which count in India -- as to cricket genius Sachin Tendulkar should be honoured with the top most civilian award Bharat Ratna (Jewel of India).

No sportsperson in India have ever been bestowed with this honour. This is in itself bad considering some unworthy individuals from other walks of life have got it. That is a different matter though.

Recently Maharashtra Chief Minister proposed in the State Assembly that Sachin should be given this honour which is passed unanimously. Sachin’s familiarity transcends all provincial boundaries, why then his home State alone should talk about this? This is a time tested politicians striving to get some cheap publicity. Nothing more than that.

Yesterday, Sachin candidly admitted MS Dhoni is the best skipper he played under. We welcomed the grace of Sachin, and savoured the moment. That should be the team spirit.

Today, perhaps as a return gift, the skipper himself advocated Bharat Ratna for Sachin. 'If he doesn't get, no one else' was his line of argument.

We, sports lovers first, would be delighted if someone a living legend like Sachin getting Bharat Rata. But we have a rider -- and we are serious about it.

This coveted award should first be given to hockey wizard Dhyan Chand posthumously. After that, it can can go to other sporting greats starting with Sachin, and why not.

Dhyan Chand, a low level solider in the British Indian Army, is world hockey’s first hero. Just like Bradman is cricket’s first global hero; Sachin is not first hero of his chosen sport, he is current hero. Time is a crucial factor, scoring hattrick of goals against Germany by a non-Aryan Dhyan Chand in the Olympics organized by Adolf Hitler has no match to it. There may have been other sporting feats in the history of India, but this Berlin magic has its own.

Because of Dhyan Chand and his achievements, hockey as a sport grew in India, and became the National Game.

He got us three Olympic gold, where his feats were outstanding all through. He scored goals in the finals especially, and inspired his generation of players to deliver.

All his game have been unblemished just like Bradman in cricket. Sachin despite his greatness did not score in many crucial games, including the latest World Cup final, as an aberration.

There is statue of Dhyan Chand in Delhi, national stadium is named after him, his birth anniversary has been declared as National Sports Day on which Arjuna and other sporting awards are disbursed by none other than the first citizen of this country.

All these have been done as per the popular wish of the country, and in recognition of hockey’s contribution to the sporting legacy of India, even now 8 out of 9 Olympic golds that India won, has the label of hockey.

Give Sachin a Bharat Ratna, not because Maharashtra Government wants, or because MS Dhoni recommends, but because he deserves it, the nation at large would cherish that.

But, it will be injustice to the soul of Dhyan Chand if that award is not conferred on him first before anybody else is thought of.

Civil society in India will not tolerate such an insult. It will rise against if such injustice would ever occur.

K. Arumugam is a hockey historian, his article on Dhyan Chand was in the XI standard English Text book (CBSE syllabus) for many years (2002-2008).

Monday, April 4, 2011

Penalty Stroke "OUT", Penalty Shootout "IN"



Shootouts to make FIH debut


With the next round of FIH tournaments just around the corner, one of the biggest changes to FIH Regulations is about to be put to the test with the Penalty Shoot-out Competition replacing the Penalty Stroke Competition to determine the result of tied classification matches. The first tournament that will see this is the Women’s Champions Challenge 2, which is due to be played in Vienna between 7 and 15 May.

The FIH.ch team caught up with FIH Competitions Manager Martyn Gallivan to help players, officials, spectators and TV audiences better understand what awaits the game with the latest amendments to the FIH Regulations.

What are the key differences between a penalty stroke and a shoot-out?
A penalty stroke is a single shot by an attacker against a goalkeeper. The ball is placed on the penalty spot 6.4 metres from the back line. A good comparison for a newcomer to hockey would be to say that it is similar to a penalty kick in football. In a Penalty Shoot-out, the ball is placed on the 23-metre line, with an attacker next to it and a goalkeeper in goal on the back line. When the whistle is blown the attacker has 8 seconds in which to try and score a goal. This more mirrors what ice hockey has as it is permitted for the attacker to move the ball forward before taking a shot.

Why has the FIH decided to change from a penalty stroke to a penalty shoot-out?
FIH Competitions Committee has been researching whether or not to move away from Penalty Stroke competitions for the last two years. After much discussion and research, it was decided to use Penalty Shoot-outs because they ultimately better replicate real game situations and tend to require more skill, and as such are a better way to determine a tied match.

When do the new regulations take effect?
Immediately. The first time we will see them in use is at the upcoming Champions Challenge 2 in Vienna.

Does this mean all tied matches will now be decided in a penalty shoot-out?
No, there will still be matches that remained tied at the end of regulation time. Just as before with the Penalty Stroke competition, the Penalty Shoot-out will only be used in classification matches (quarterfinals, semi-finals, medal games, etc). Penalty Strokes will still remain during normal time for offences that require more than a Penalty Corner.

So is the plan for London 2012 to have a shoot-out as well?
Yes, assuming a classification game ends in a tie, then there will be a Penalty Shoot-out.

Are shoot-outs currently used anywhere else in competition?
Yes. They have been used in the Australian Hockey League since 2001 and the EuroHockey League since it started in 2007/2008.

Are there any other major regulation changes that are due to take effect?
The biggest changes that will be noticed are a few things that we have been testing for the last few events. For example, the two-minute suspension for a green card has been made permanent, while the same procedure is being applied to yellow cards. Also, the experimental rule about a defender breaking the line or an attacker entering the circle too early at a penalty corner and having to go to the half-way line, has been made permanent.

During this year’s Champions Trophy and Champions Challenge tournaments we are also trying different competition formats. For example in the Rabo FIH Champions Trophy Women being played in Amsterdam, we trying a second phase of pool matches after the initial ones, followed by classification matches. In the other tournaments we are trialing knock out matches after the initial pool matches. Both of these make for longer tournaments and should provide more interest for teams and spectators alike throughout the whole tournament.