Hockey World Cup, Bhubaneswar: Schools, Colleges Closed, Half-Day In State Offices For Opening Ceremony

The Odisha Government has told all Educational institutions in Bhubaneswar to remain closed on Tuesday (27 November) for the opening ceremony of the fourteenth Hockey World Cup, reported the Times of India.

The FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup is scheduled to begin in the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar on 28 November 2018 and will see 16 teams battle it out for the title of Hockey World Champion.

A release from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said schools and other educational institutions in Bhubaneswar would remain closed for the full working day and educational institutions across Odisha will work until 1.30 PM.

The release added that government offices across the state, including offices in Bhubaneswar will work until 1.30 PM. While the World Cup will be begin on 28 November, the opening ceremony will be held on Tuesday (27 November) at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar.

Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit and singer AR Rahman, along with various Odia actors will be performing in the opening ceremony. The Kalinga stadium was recently revamped to fit FIH regulations, with a new blue turf, and an increased stadium capacity to 15,000.

India is hosting the World Cup for the third time after 1982 in Bombay and 2010 in New Delhi. Indian Hockey team will be hoping to add a second gold medal to their tally, the last Gold being in 1975 World Cup. Team India is pitted against Belgium, Canada and South Africa in Pool C. Their opening fixture is against South Africa on 28 November 7.00 PM IST.

You can watch the opening ceremony, and World Cup matches on the Star Sports Network, Doordarshan and live stream it on FIH youtube channel as well as Hotstar.