New Delhi: Field hockey is struggling to remain an Olympic sport, says international hockey federation (FIH) president Els van Breda Vriesman.
"It is no secret that hockey is fighting for survival as an Olympic sport. The sport has twice faced a confidence vote in the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Congress but managed to survive," Vriesman of the Netherlands revealed to IANS in a conversation soon after declaring India as the "conditional" host for the 2010 World Cup hockey tournament.
"About time we got our act together. India is one of the main reasons we have managed to hang in there so far but there's waning TV interest coupled with the fact that bidders for future Olympic Games are reluctant to spend extra cash for artificial hockey pitches -- it is time we made the game a marketing success," she added.
A senior official of the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) disclosed that the 2010 World Cup has been thrust upon it "rather than us bidding for it".
"It is the FIH that wants the World Cup in India, possibly to prove a point to the IOC that hockey can still be a huge draw," said the official, not wanting to be named.
"India is the only reason that hockey continues to be an Olympic sport. After all it is not easy to justify ignoring a sport popular in a country of more than a billion."
Talking about the "conditions" that the FIH wants met before it formally accepts India as the 2010 World Cup hosts, the IHF official said this was only a "face-saving gimmick".
"Nobody else wants the World Cup, apart from Australia. If India pulls out, FIH has nowhere to go but Down Under. And even there, hockey is certainly not among the five most popular sports."
"The FIH wants an elaborate marketing strategy in place by March next year so that they can showcase the 2010 event to the rest of the world. It's all about money."
"Hockey must prove that it can make money for the Olympics, or else be replaced by other sports that have been knocking on the IOC doors with bags full of cash."
Sports like rugby, golf, snooker and baseball are striving hard to be included as an Olympic sport for the 2016 Games.