BHUBANESWAR: Hockey India (HI) was impressed with the incredible response by hockey fans for the opening ceremony of the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018.
An unprecedented number of fans logged in to the online ticketing website, ticketgenie.in within hours of the ticket sales opening from 12 pm on 20 November. The heavy traffic led to some technical issues which were resolved swiftly.
However, with many fans missing out on tickets for the 27 November event at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, HI has made some online tickets still available for purchase when it comes to the following day’s World Cup Celebrations event at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack.
HI has also requested the Odisha government to install large screens across different districts and blocks to provide the local citizens live coverage of the opening ceremony.
Additionally, the governing body also confirmed that Doordarshan will be telecasting the event alongside official broadcasters and partners of the tournament, Star Sports.
International Hockey Federation (FIH) and Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President Narinder Batra said: “I am delighted to see the overwhelming outcome for the upcoming Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup Bhubaneswar 2018. I understand the organisers are making their best efforts to meet the expectations of hockey fans and look forward to the event being a grand success.”
