Hockey India Top Officials Deny Claims Of Infighting In Joint Statement

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Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey and secretary general Bhola Nath Singh denied claims of rift between the top officials following claims made by outgoing foreign staffs Elena Norman (CEO) and Janneke Schopman (women's team coach).

Stepping down from her post as CEO of Hockey India after 13 years, Elena Norman claimed in an interview that the working environment at the federation has been challenging due to infighting between the two officials.

"There are two factions in Hockey India. There is (President) Dilip Tirkey and I and there is (Secretary) Bholanath Singh, (Executive Director) Cdr. R K Srivastava and (Treasurer) Sekar J Manoharan," she said.

"Recently there have been statements by outgoing officials published in the media, claiming that there are divisions within the organisation. This is not correct. We remain united in working together, and as always in the best interest of the sport," the statement said.

Janneke Schopman stepped down from her position soon after her interview to NNIS, where she spoke of the growing problems she faced with the federation. Hockey India reasoned that she is fired because of the women's team's failure to qualify for Paris Olympics.

"The Federation has treated the teams and all players equally with equal benefits and training facilities, including cash awards and monetary recognition that is at-par and is purely based on performance. We have built our ethos around equity and equal opportunities right from the grassroots levels across states as well as on a national level," the statement added.

Tirkey and Singh said their focus is now on rebuilding the women's team, which failed to qualify for the Olympics, and helping the men's side that is due to compete in the quadrennial showpiece in Paris this year.

"We will continue in this pursuit of excellence and rebuild the women's team with a fresh approach to providing the right infrastructure and training to enhance their performance," they stated.

"In addition to this, we are cognisant of this being an Olympic year and are dedicated to aide the National Men's Team with the required support to stand on the podium yet again in the forthcoming Olympic Games in Paris this year."

-With inputs from PTI