Bangladesh national hockey team at last received the acknowledgement of the government for their notable performances in the Hockey World League yesterday. Hosted the by the ministry of youth and sports at the National Sports Council tower, the national hockey squad was awarded a package of Tk0.5m with all the players getting Tk20,000 each. Midfielder Russell Mahmud Jimmy, who was adjudged as the best player of the HWL round 2, was awarded an added package of Tk10,000 while Bangladesh’s highest scorer Mamunur Rahman Chayan also received extra Tk10,000. Coach Mahbub Harun, who guided the team to the championship of the first round and to the brilliant performances in the second, was honoured with an additional Tk20,000. Bangladesh retained the men's AHF Cup Hockey title with an all-win record in April 2012, they won the first round of the HWL in Singapore in September and finished third in round two ahead of China, the 18th ranked team of the world, in February last. However, all the members of the squad were not present at the occasion. Star players Jimmy, Biplob and Chayan are currently playing in Germany; Rana, Sarwar and Koushik were out of the capital; Krishna and Tapash had to attend training of Navy while the Army players Malek and Shohag had a programme of their own. The players present were skipper Jahid, Nannu, Chandan, Pushkor Khisha, Asim, Khorshed, Pintu and Niloy. Both manager and the assistant manager along with the umpires were also awarded. The minister urged the hockey team to keep up their good work. “We are happy to see such performances and hope that the national hockey team will bring more laurels for the country in the future” said Ahad Ali Sarker. Air Marshal Enamul Bari, the president of the hockey federation thanked the ministry for the assistance. “Last year the ministry’s grant for the hockey federation was the biggest among all the sports federations and I think we have also delivered to a satisfactory level, we hope to continue the trend” said Bari. Skipper Jahid Hossain was happy with the development. “It’s the acknowledgement what makes me happy, the amount may not be big but it’s the honour that drives me” said the goalkeeper. Sports secretary Nur Mohammed, federation general secretary Khwaja Rahmatullah, other NSC and federation officials were also present.
Thursday, March 20, 2025
