Ajit Pal elected PHPA chairman

January 12: Former international hockey players, including Olympians, have decided to take hockey to the grassroot level by organising co...

January 12: Former international hockey players, including Olympians, have decided to take hockey to the grassroot level by organising coaching-cum-competition programme in their respectively areas.

More than 30 Olympians and internationals recently met in Jalandhar and formed the Punjab Hockey Players Association (PHPA). Captain of the victorious 1975 World Cup champions Ajit Pal Singh was elected chairman while four-time Olympian Udham Singh was made patron-in-chief. Olympian Dharam Singh was made patron.

Sukuvir Singh Grewal was elected president and Jagdeep Singh Gill will be the secretary general. Gundeep Kumar is the treasurer. Tarsem Singh was eleced vice-president. The other office-bearers and members of the executive committee would be announced soon.

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Among those who attended the meeting were Tarsem Singh, Devinder Singh, Gurmail Singh, Narinder Singh, Mukhbain Singh, Pargat Singh, Jagdeep Singh Gill, Sukhjit Singh, Jagdev Singh, Ashok Kumar, Ram Saran, Harpreet Singh, Baljit Singh Bhullar,Sarabjit Singh, Harinder Singh, Sukhvir Singh Grewal, Hardeep Singh Grewal, Gundeep Kumar and Baljit Singh Dhillon.

Those who could not attend the meeting have assured full cooperation for promotion of hockey.

Besides promoting hockey at the grassroot level, it will also work for the welfare of the needy and deserving players. “We will soon involve former women internationals and Olympians so that they work side by side to the benefit of young hockey girls,” announced Sukhvir Grewal.

The association will have its headquarters at Jalandhar. The association’s first function will be held next month where all three members of the Bangkok Asiad gold medal winning hockey team — Ramandeep Singh Grewal, Baljit Singh Dhillon and Baljit Singh Saini — would be felicitated.