Ranchi is the capital of the Indian state of Jharkhand. Ranchi was the centre of the Jharkhand movement, which called for a separate state for the tribal regions of South Bihar, northern Odisha, western West Bengal and the eastern area of what is present-day Chhattisgarh. The Jharkhand state was formed on 15 November 2000 by carving out the Bihar divisions of Chota Nagpur and Santhal Parganas. Ranchi has been selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under PM Narendra Modi's flagship Smart Cities Mission.
Gregg Clark is a field hockey player from South Africa, who was a member of the national squad that finished tenth at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. He was also present at the Atlanta Games in 1996. The midfielder played for Durban, and a provincial team called KwaZulu Natal Raiders. He is also the most capped South African national hockey player with 250 caps and 42 goals.
Moritz Fürste is a German field hockey player. He was a member of the Men's National Team that won the gold medal at the 2008 Summer Olympics and 2012 Summer Olympics as well as at the 2006 World Cup. He played at the Uhlenhorster Hockey Club in Hamburg from 1989 till 2012. He was captain of the team. He has guided his team to success in the Euro Hockey League on three occasions, winning the title in 2007–08, 2009–10 and 2011–12. Fürste also helped his team to a second-place finish in the competition in the 2008–09 Season, when they were defeated by HC Bloemendaal of The Netherlands. Since 2012 he is playing at Spanish Club de Campo Villa de Madrid. After retiring after season 2018-2019 he just signed a new deal with Royal Beerschot THC in Belgium for 1 season.
Sardara Singh, sometimes referred as Sardar Singh, is an Indian field hockey coach and former field hockey player. He also served as the captain of the Indian national team. He usually plays the center half position. Sardara became the youngest player to captain the Indian team when he led the side at the 2008 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup. He was awarded Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award of India, in 2015. On 13 July 2016, the responsibilities of the captain were handed over from him to P. R. Sreejesh, the goalkeeper of Indian Team. On 12 September 2018, Sardara announced his retirement from international hockey. He played 314 matches during 12 years in his career.
Sandeep Singh is an Indian professional field hockey player .His birth place was Shahbad Markanda,Haryana and an ex-captain of the Indian national hockey team. He generally features as a full back and is a penalty corner specialist for the team. He has been dubbed "Flicker Singh" in the media for his specialization of the drag-flick, one of the fastest in the world.
World Series Hockey (WSH) was a professional league for field hockey competition in India. It was organised by Indian Hockey Federation with the objective to reinvigorate hockey in India. It was contested among eight franchise-based teams consisting of players from India and around the world. The entire event took place on home and away basis culminating into multi header playoffs. Australian Dennis Meredith, a member of the FIH panel of tournament directors, was the technical director of the WSH. It was sponsored by tyre manufacturers, Bridgestone, and therefore officially known as Bridgestone World Series Hockey.
Somwarpet Vittalacharya Sunil is an Indian former field hockey player who played for the Indian national team. He represented India during the 2012 London Olympics and won silver with them at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. He received the Arjun Award in 2017.
Birendra Lakra is an Indian former field hockey player. He represented India in men's field hockey and recently came out of retirement alongside Rupinderpal Singh and captained the Indian team in the Asia Cup held in Jakarta, Indonesia to a bronze medal. In the 2020 Tokyo Olympics also, he also served as the vice-captain of Indian team.
Hockey India League (HIL), also known as the Coal India Hockey India League, is a professional field hockey league in India. The league is organized by Hockey India, the governing body for the sport in India. HIL, along with the Indian Premier League, Indian Super League, and Pro Kabaddi League, is considered one of the major sports leagues in the country. HIL consists of six teams, with the regular season lasting two months from January to February, with each team playing 10 games. The top four teams at the end of the season move into the play-offs, where the championship game decides the Hockey India League winner.
2013 Hockey India League, known as Hero Hockey India League and abbreviated as HIL 2013 was the first season of the field hockey tournament Hockey India League. Tournament was scheduled to start from 5 January to 3 February but was postponed to 14 January to 10 February.
The Uttar Pradesh Wizards was an Indian professional field hockey team based in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh that played in the Hockey India League. It was owned by Sahara India.
Jaypee Punjab Warriors is a professional field hockey team based in Chandigarh, Punjab that plays in the Hockey India League. It is owned by Jaypee Group.
2013 Hockey India League Players' Auction was the auction of players for the first season of the franchise-based field hockey tournament, Hockey India League. Auction was conducted by International Auctioneer Bob Hayton and took place on 16 December at The Lalit Hotel in New Delhi.
Mandeep Singh is an Indian field hockey player who currently plays as a forward for Delhi Waveriders in the Hockey India League and the India men's national field hockey team.
The 2014 Hockey India League, abbreviated as HIL 2014, is the second season of the professional field hockey tournament, Hockey India League. The tournament begun on 25 January 2014 with the final on 23 February 2014.
Kalinga Lancers is a professional field hockey team based in Bhubaneswar, Odisha that plays in the Hockey India League. It is jointly owned by Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (IDCO) and Mahanadi Coalfield Limited (MCL). Former Australian field player Mark Hager is the head coach of the team while former Indian captain Dilip Tirkey is the chief mentor and advisor of the team.
Rupinder Pal Singh is a professional field hockey player, who represents India in the Indian Hockey Team. He plays as a fullback and is known for his abilities as one of the best drag flickers in the world. He represented India in the 2014 Commonwealth Games at Glasgow, 2014 Asian Games at Incheon, 2016 Olympic Games held at Rio de Janeiro, and at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, held at Gold Coast, Australia. He was part of the Indian hockey team that won a bronze medal at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Ranchi Rays (RCR) is an Indian professional field hockey team based in Ranchi, Jharkhand that competes in the Hockey India League (HIL). It was announced as the newest team to replace the defunct Ranchi Rhinos on 25 October 2014. It is owned by Indian cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
The 2016 Hockey India League (HIL) (known as Coal India Hockey India League for sponsorship reasons) is the fourth season of the professional field hockey tournament. The Hockey India League began on 18 January and concluded with Punjab Warriors as champion against Kalinga Lancers in the final on 21 February.
The 2016 season is Ranchi Rays' second season in the Hockey India League. The season covers the period from 18 January to 21 February 2016. The season saw the introduction of a new rule according to which weightage for field goals was double compared to the goals scored from penalty corners, meaning a field goal will count as two while successfully converted short corner will still be considered as one goal.
