Indian Hockey Teams Pulls Out of 2022 Commonwealth Games
In a major development, the Indian men’s and women’s hockey team will not be part of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham after pulling out of the event citing COVID-19 concerns and mandatory 10-day quarantine in United Kingdom, news agency PTI reported on Tuesday.
Hockey India president Gyanandro Ningombam communicated the federation’s decision to Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President Narinder Batra.
In the letter, prioritising the Asian Games, which is the continental qualification event for the 2024 Paris Olympics, HI highlighted the 32-day gap window between the Birmingham Games (July 28-August 8) and the Hangzhou Asian Games (September 10-25) and also added that they can’t risk sending its players to the UK which has been one of the worst affected countries by the coronavirus pandemic.
“You will appreciate that the Asian games is the Continental qualification event for the 2024 Paris Olympic Games and keeping the priority of the Asian Games in mind, Hockey India can not risk any members of the Indian teams contracting COVID-19 during the Commonwealth Games," Ningombam wrote.
The UK recently refused to recognise India’s COVID-19 vaccination certificates and imposed a 10-day hard quarantine on travellers from the country even if they were fully vaccinated.
HI’s move comes a day after England pulled out of the FIH Men’s Junior World Cup to be held in Bhubaneswar next month, citing a number of COVID-related concerns and taking “note" of the Indian government’s mandatory 10-day quarantine protocol for all UK nationals. India imposed reciprocal curbs on all British nationals arriving in the country after UK’s restrictions.
(Source : News18)
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