The former first lady of United States – Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of former US President Franklin D. Roosevelt – once said: “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.”
And Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, whose slogan is “Sports for Youth, Youth for the Future”, is an apt ode to the adage. The gritty leader dreamt of transforming Odisha into the sports hub of India, and under his visionary leadership the state is developing a robust sports ecosystem, which includes world-class sports infrastructure – be it modern facilities, High Performance Centres or launching programmes to promote sports from grassroots level.
If one says that sponsoring Indian hockey teams or hosting the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup in 2018 would be the peak for Naveen & Co in turning Odisha into a sports hub, then 2023 saw the state stride even further.
The year 2023 is historic for the Odisha government when Bhubaneswar became the first city to host the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup second time on the trot, with Steel City Rourkela as co-host.
After the spectacular success of the 2017 Asian Athletics Championships and the 2018 Hockey WC, Odisha was complimented with the title of the ‘Sports Capital of India’. The state is investing significantly in developing an inclusive and all-accessible sports ecosystem that benefits its sportspersons and promotes a healthy lifestyle right from block to state level.
Kalinga Stadium Sports Complex boasts of one of the best sports hubs in the country for its world-class infrastructures and facilities. And the introduction of Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium Complex in Rourkela added more feathers to Odisha’s sports hub dream. The World Cup Village of the complex was developed within record nine months, which received applauds from around the world.
The aim of the stadium is to provide a much-needed boost to hockey infrastructure in the ‘Cradle of Indian Hockey’, Sundargarh – which has produced many international players, paving way for future stars who can get access to state-of-the-art facilities at their doorstep.
The state’s efforts were endorsed in 2021 when Odisha was adjudged the ‘Best State of the Decade for Promotion of Sports’ at the ‘Sportstar Aces Awards’ – a stamp of approval that is not easy to rival.
A scale up of the state’s annual sports budget drives home the point. From a modest Rs 280 million in 2010-11, the allocations have gone up to a whooping Rs 12 billion for 2023-24. And it wouldn’t be wrong if one says it was hockey that set the ball rolling for Odisha.
In 2018, Naveen announced the agreement with Hockey India to sponsor the men’s and women’s teams for five years. However, the teams’ spectacular performances at Tokyo 2020 prompted the Naveen Patnaik-led government to extend endorsements until 2033.
The tribal belt of Sundargarh, a breeding ground of hockey players, now offers potential to churn out rugby talents, and the Sports Ministry has focused on building the requisite infrastructure at the grassroots level. A total of 17 astro turf facilities are being built here, while Odisha also decided to adopt rugby as the next major sport, with sponsorship of the men and women’s national teams.
Two new HPCs – gymnastics and hockey – were inaugurated earlier this year at the Kalinga Stadium. The Gymnastics HPC is a joint initiative with Arcelor Mittal Nippon Steel (AM/NS) India, while the Hockey HPC is being set up in partnership with Tata Steel and Tata Trusts. Also, Odisha recently signed an MoU with AM/NS India to establish Kho Kho HPC.
So far, Odisha has HPCs for shooting, hockey, badminton, weightlifting, athletics, sports science, swimming, football, gymnastics and a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in sports management. Patnaik also announced the strengthening of the partnership with Tata Group and starting of new HPCs in archery and sport climbing.
In November this year, the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and Odisha government, in the presence of Arsene Wenger, FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to set up the AIFF-FIFA Talent Academy at the Odisha Football Academy in Bhubaneswar.
The objective of the academy is to identify talents, to educate children to get them as good as they can be and provide good level of competition to make great players. The target is to put India on global football map.
The year also witnessed the introduction of India’s first indoor athletics stadium. Italian firm, Mondo SpA has set up a 10,000 sq metres track in the stadium which is going to be the first-of-its-kind in India. The stadium can accommodate 120 athletes for full-time coaching. It also has a classroom for studies, medical facilities and a dedicated pantry for inmates.
The track features long jump, triple jump, 100m, 200m tracks, pole vault and shot-put, each with its own specific requirements. The facility has two 110m practice tracks, gallery for spectators, press box as well as a broadcast arena.
Major events hosted by Odisha in 2023
The state played host to several competitions, including Men’s Hockey World Cup in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela, Inter-continental Cup football, Inter-State Senior Athletic Championships, National Aquatic Championships, Odisha Masters badminton, National Rugby 15s Championship (Division 1), Khelo India Women Fencing League & Ranking Tournament (Phase 3), Kalinga Super Swimming Series as well as several national and state-level tournaments.
The plans for promotion of kho kho got a huge boost when Odisha bagged the hosting rights of Ultimate Kho Kho season 2 as the competition gets underway December 24 at the JN Indoor Stadium in Cuttack.
Odisha athletes hog limelight
The year will mostly be remembered for javelin thrower Kishore Kumar Jena – the Hangzhou Asian Games silver medallist. He had finished a credible fifth – 1.90m short of bronze medal winner’s throw – at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest.
Another notable athlete for the state was para shuttler Pramod Bhagat who bagged gold in the men’s singles SL3 category to go with bronze medals in the men’s doubles SL3-SL4 and mixed doubles SL3-SU5 events at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games.
Both Kishore and Pramod also brought laurels to Odisha with wonderful performances in few other competitions.
The year turned out to be an even better one when Shriyanka Sadangi secured a gold medal for India at the 50m rifle 3 positions team event and a bronze medal at the 10m air rifle team event at the Asian Shooting Championship in South Korea.
The Sambalpur eve narrowly missed another medal as she finished fourth in the 50m rifle 3 positions individual event. However, it didn’t stop her from securing a 2024 Paris Olympics quota for India in the category.
Overall, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that Odisha is not only turning into a sports hub in terms of infrastructure and modern facilities, but the athletes are slowly, but gradually making a mark at global level. It may take a decade or so, when Odisha will be known for its athletes’ prowess in global sporting arenas.