Kodava Hockey Festival
Encyclopedia
The clan of Kodava
s in the Indian
state of Karnataka
have a long history of association with the game of field hockey
. The district of Kodagu
which is the land of the Kodava
s is considered as the cradle of India
n hockey. More than 50 Kodava
s have represented India in international hockey tournaments, out of which 7 have also participated in Olympics. B P Govinda, M P Ganesh, M M Somaiya, C S Poonacha and Arjun Halappa are some of the prominent Kodavas who have represented India. The passion for hockey in Kodagu
is so much that more than 200 families participate in an annual hockey festival. This festival is recognised as one of the largest field hockey tournaments in the world and has been referred to the Guinness Book of Records. However it has already found a mention in the Limca Book of Records
, which is an Indian variant of the Guinness Book.
. He conceived the idea of creating a platform in which the different Kodava families can get together. Realising the passion of hockey in Kodagu
, he decided that a hockey festival would be a good event to bring Kodavas together. He also chose the hockey festival because he was disturbed about the growth of junior hockey players from Kodagu
. The finances required for the inaugural tournament were provided by Kuttappa himself. The response however was lukewarm and this tournament held at Karada and called as Pandanda Cup attracted only around 60 families. Some rules were framed which included that all the team members must belong to the same family (surname) and participate in a full hockey attire. Even women could be a part of the team and it was left to the woman to decide whether she wants to represent the father's family or that of the husband's.
The 14th edition of the Kodava hockey tournament is being held by the Maneyapanda family http://www.maneyapanda.org in Ponnampet from April 18th to May 9th. The tournament was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Sports and Youth affairs Dr M S Gill. Dr. Gill said here on Sunday that the Government of India would do its bit to raise the sagging fortunes of Indian hockey.
Calling Maneyapanda Kodava Hockey Festival as a “special national occasion”, Mr. Gill said he had spoken to president of the International Hockey Federation Leandro Negre that India and other hockey-playing nations in Asia should have a fair share in all matters relating to international hockey, such as management and umpiring. At the same time, he said, India needed experts in all aspects of the game.
An exhibition match was played between All Star Indian XI and Coorg XI in which the latter won 3-2. All Star Indian XI was led by Dhanraj Pillay and Coorg XI was led by C.S. Poonacha.
The next edition of the tournament (15th edition) was held at Ponnampet and was hosted by Machamada[5] Family. A total of 228 teams participated in this edition with Palanganda family emerging as winners once again.
Kodava
The Kodavas are a patrilineal ethno-lingual group from the region of Kodagu, in Karnataka state of southern India who traditionally were land-owning agriculturists with martial traditions and natively speak Kodava takk...
s in the Indian
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
state of Karnataka
Karnataka
Karnataka , the land of the Kannadigas, is a state in South West India. It was created on 1 November 1956, with the passing of the States Reorganisation Act and this day is annually celebrated as Karnataka Rajyotsava...
have a long history of association with the game of field hockey
Field hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
. The district of Kodagu
Kodagu
Kodagu , also known by its anglicised former name of Coorg, is an administrative district in Karnataka, India. It occupies an area of in the Western Ghats of southwestern Karnataka. As of 2001, the population was 548,561, 13.74% of which resided in the district's urban centres, making it the least...
which is the land of the Kodava
Kodava
The Kodavas are a patrilineal ethno-lingual group from the region of Kodagu, in Karnataka state of southern India who traditionally were land-owning agriculturists with martial traditions and natively speak Kodava takk...
s is considered as the cradle of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n hockey. More than 50 Kodava
Kodava
The Kodavas are a patrilineal ethno-lingual group from the region of Kodagu, in Karnataka state of southern India who traditionally were land-owning agriculturists with martial traditions and natively speak Kodava takk...
s have represented India in international hockey tournaments, out of which 7 have also participated in Olympics. B P Govinda, M P Ganesh, M M Somaiya, C S Poonacha and Arjun Halappa are some of the prominent Kodavas who have represented India. The passion for hockey in Kodagu
Kodagu
Kodagu , also known by its anglicised former name of Coorg, is an administrative district in Karnataka, India. It occupies an area of in the Western Ghats of southwestern Karnataka. As of 2001, the population was 548,561, 13.74% of which resided in the district's urban centres, making it the least...
is so much that more than 200 families participate in an annual hockey festival. This festival is recognised as one of the largest field hockey tournaments in the world and has been referred to the Guinness Book of Records. However it has already found a mention in the Limca Book of Records
Limca Book of Records
Limca Book of Records is a record book of Indian origin. First published in 1990, when the Limca Brand was owned by Parle Group. The book continued to be published by Coca-Cola, when they bought the Limca Brand. The 20th edition of this book was released by Amitabh Bachchan in March 2009...
, which is an Indian variant of the Guinness Book.
Origin
The Kodava hockey festival was started in the year 1997 and was the brainchild of 69 year old Pandanda Kuttappa who was a first division hockey referee and an ex-employee of State Bank of IndiaState Bank of India
The State Bank of India is the largest Indian banking and financial services company with its headquarters in Mumbai, India. It is state-owned. The bank traces its ancestry to British India, through the Imperial Bank of India, to the founding in 1806 of the Bank of Calcutta, making it the oldest...
. He conceived the idea of creating a platform in which the different Kodava families can get together. Realising the passion of hockey in Kodagu
Kodagu
Kodagu , also known by its anglicised former name of Coorg, is an administrative district in Karnataka, India. It occupies an area of in the Western Ghats of southwestern Karnataka. As of 2001, the population was 548,561, 13.74% of which resided in the district's urban centres, making it the least...
, he decided that a hockey festival would be a good event to bring Kodavas together. He also chose the hockey festival because he was disturbed about the growth of junior hockey players from Kodagu
Kodagu
Kodagu , also known by its anglicised former name of Coorg, is an administrative district in Karnataka, India. It occupies an area of in the Western Ghats of southwestern Karnataka. As of 2001, the population was 548,561, 13.74% of which resided in the district's urban centres, making it the least...
. The finances required for the inaugural tournament were provided by Kuttappa himself. The response however was lukewarm and this tournament held at Karada and called as Pandanda Cup attracted only around 60 families. Some rules were framed which included that all the team members must belong to the same family (surname) and participate in a full hockey attire. Even women could be a part of the team and it was left to the woman to decide whether she wants to represent the father's family or that of the husband's.
Growth
After the inaugural tournament, an academy called as The Kodava Hockey Academy was started to oversee and have the final say in all matters related to the future tournaments. Each subsequent tournament would be organised annually by a different Kodava family and the name of the family was given as the name of the tournament. The organising family was mainly responsible for arranging the finances and infrastructure needed for the festival. The cost was recovered from the sponsors and raffle tickets. Kodava families which participated in the tournament also shared a part of the cost depending on their capacity and will. The response to the tournament grew year by year and reached a maximum in the year 2003 in which 280 teams participated for the Kaliyanda Cup at Napoklu. The maximum women participation was in the year 2000 when 30 women took part in the Cheppudira Cup held at Ponnampet. The opening and closing ceremonies are held with pomp and splendour and various dances and martial arts of Kodavas are demonstrated. The tournament is inaugurated by a guest by doing a pass-back of the hockey ball using a silver hockey stick. Stalls setup around the venue do brisk business because of the large crowds that come to view the matches.The 14th edition of the Kodava hockey tournament is being held by the Maneyapanda family http://www.maneyapanda.org in Ponnampet from April 18th to May 9th. The tournament was inaugurated by the Union Minister for Sports and Youth affairs Dr M S Gill. Dr. Gill said here on Sunday that the Government of India would do its bit to raise the sagging fortunes of Indian hockey.
Calling Maneyapanda Kodava Hockey Festival as a “special national occasion”, Mr. Gill said he had spoken to president of the International Hockey Federation Leandro Negre that India and other hockey-playing nations in Asia should have a fair share in all matters relating to international hockey, such as management and umpiring. At the same time, he said, India needed experts in all aspects of the game.
An exhibition match was played between All Star Indian XI and Coorg XI in which the latter won 3-2. All Star Indian XI was led by Dhanraj Pillay and Coorg XI was led by C.S. Poonacha.
The next edition of the tournament (15th edition) was held at Ponnampet and was hosted by Machamada[5] Family. A total of 228 teams participated in this edition with Palanganda family emerging as winners once again.
Tournaments
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