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Journalism of Courage
JSW Sports who bought a franchise for the 2017 edition of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) have decided to call the team as Haryana Steelers, in an announcement made on Saturday.
The Steelers will be seen playing out of Haryana and become the fourth new team to join Pro Kabaddi League alongside Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu being the others. The 12-team Pro Kabaddi league will start in July and continue until October. The format has changed from last year when it was conducted twice in a year.
“The manner in which the PKL has swiftly turned around the way Kabaddi is played, viewed and followed is fantastic, to say the least. We are thrilled to be part of the ride this season. We couldn’t have asked for a more apt place than Haryana to field a team out of, given it is where our family hails from and that it has always been a hotbed for athletes who have gone on to do the nation proud,” said Parth Jindal the Director of JSW Sports.
JSW Sports has confirmed Ranbir Singh Khokkar as the coach of Haryana Steelers. Khokkar, a former national Kabaddi player has a strong 35 years of coaching experience and has previously led India to gold medals in Beijing in 1990 at the 11th Asian Games and the 4th Asian Indoor Games in Incheon in 2013.
Khokkar has helped the Iranian Kabaddi team in finding some naturally talented players with the likes off Fazel Athrachali and Meraj Sheykh, which are now strong forces in the Pro Kabaddi League.
Commenting on being the coach, Khokkar said, “I look forward to working with a team such as JSW Sports who are focused on the development of sport in the country and the professional management of sports teams. Their experience in team management and the infrastructure they provide will be a big benefit to a team thats making its debut.”
The auctions for Pro Kabaddi League will take place on May 22.
