Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath welcomed the FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup 2025 trophy in Lucknow. He recalled the glorious hockey history of UP, the contribution of Major Dhyan Chand, KD Singh Babu and the players and wished the Indian team all the best.
Lucknow. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath gave a grand welcome to the prestigious trophy of FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup 2025 in Lucknow on Wednesday. He said that this is a proud moment for Uttar Pradesh and the people of the state. This time, 24 teams including India are participating in the Junior Hockey World Cup – which includes countries like China, Belgium, Japan, Spain, New Zealand, Chile, Canada and Australia.
Remembrance of the golden hockey history of Uttar Pradesh
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that the trophy’s arrival in Uttar Pradesh is a reminder of the golden hockey history of the state. He said that the contribution of UP to Hockey India is unforgettable. Remembering hockey magician Major Dhyan Chand, CM Yogi said that he was born on the soil of Uttar Pradesh and under his leadership the Indian team had won gold medals in three Olympics. Yogi told that the state government is constructing Major Dhyan Chand Sports University in Meerut and its first session has started from this year.
Salute to KD Singh Babu and other hockey greats
Chief Minister Yogi also mentioned KD Singh Babu, the great hockey player born in Uttar Pradesh. He informed that his residence in Barabanki is now being developed as a memorial museum, so that his legacy inspires the new generation.
Pride of UP: Contribution of hockey players
Chief Minister Yogi said that Uttar Pradesh has given many such hockey players who have made the country proud. He praised the contributions of Padma awardee players – Mohammad Shahid, Ashok Kumar, Ravindra Pal, Syed Ali, Dr. RP Singh, Sujit Kumar, Abdul Aziz, Subodh Khandekar, Rajneesh Mishra, Mohammad Shakeel, Devesh Chauhan, MP Singh, Jagveer Singh, Rahul Singh, Vivek Singh, Lalit Upadhyay, Danish Mutjaba, Rajkumar Pal, Prem Maya, Ranjana Srivastava, Manju Bisht, Pushpa Srivastava and Preeti Dubey. Remembered.
Current generation players are making Uttar Pradesh proud
The Chief Minister said that even today the players of Uttar Pradesh Rajkumar Pal, Uttam Singh, Vishnukant Singh, Mumtaz, Sakshi, Jyoti and Purnima are bringing glory to the state and the country by getting selected in the senior and junior teams of Indian hockey.
Best wishes for successful conduct of FIH Hockey Junior World Cup
CM Yogi Adityanath welcomed all the officials associated with the Junior Hockey World Cup 2025 in Lucknow and congratulated him for the successful organization of the tournament. He also congratulated the Indian team for its excellent performance in the competition.
Many distinguished guests attended the ceremony
- Sports and Youth Welfare Minister Girish Chandra Yadav
- Sports Department Secretary Suhas LYV
- Director Dr. RP Singh
- Bholanath Singh, General Secretary of Hockey India
- DG Hockey India Commander RK Srivastava
- Uttar Pradesh Hockey General Secretary Rajneesh Kumar Mishra
- International player Lalit Upadhyay
Many officials and players were present along with him in the ceremony.
FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup 2025: Organization and participation
The FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup 2025 will be held from 28 November to 10 December 2025 in Chennai and Madurai (Tamil Nadu). 24 teams will participate in the tournament for the first time. Host India, which won the title in 2001 and 2016, will now aim to win the title on home soil for the third time.