Dedicated duo: Lakshmi Vaikunth & J. Rekha.
| Photo Credit: K. Keerthivasan.
At a time when women’s hockey tournaments in Tamil Nadu, organised by private clubs, are hard to come by, a group of 15 women, has been organising a tournament successfully for the last three years here.
In its recently concluded fourth edition (July 25 to 27) at the SDAT-Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium, the ‘We are for Hockey’ Trophy for schools, colleges and clubs has attracted 16 teams from different parts of the state. The response, too, has been very good with teams from Erode, Tirunelveli, Vellore, and Kovilpatti taking part.
Former Tamil Nadu players, J. Rekha and Lakshmi Vaikunth, president and secretary of ‘We are for Hockey’ Club, are a sprightly duo, handling everything with gusto and elan.
Lakshmi had to run from pillar to post for sponsorship and other routine things associated with running a tournament. “It has been quite hectic for the last few weeks, running for sponsors and other things,” Lakshmi said.
She added: “The founding members of the Club are from diverse backgrounds. There is an Inspector & a constable, a private banker, one from the Railway Protection Force, two housewives, a fitness trainer, a few former India campers and an SDAT coach. We are happy to keep the tournament running into its fourth year.”
According to Lakshmi, getting a sponsor for women’s hockey is not easy. “Before the start of the tournament, we were knocking on the doors of a sponsor for quite a while. The sponsor didn’t say yes or no. We kept approaching the company regularly. But at the last minute, we got a ‘no’.”
The group of 15 women, however, have tapped into the contacts to put together a tournament that will give cash prizes to the winners: Rs. 30,000 for first place, 20,000 for the second and Rs. 10,000 for the third.
“We want to promote women’s hockey and showcase the talent of our girls to the public. Through our tournament, we want a Tamil Nadu player to represent India at the Olympics,” said Lakshmi.
A suggestion
Lakshmi and Rekha heaped praise on the Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu and Chennai Hockey Association (CHA) for their invaluable support. But Rekha is quick to add that it would be great if CHA conducts a women’s league which it did in 2018-19.
‘We are for Hockey’ Club has a target, which it feels is achievable. “We want to make our event an All-India one, more like the MCC-Murugappa tournament. We also are keen to get our club affiliated to Hockey India,” said Lakshmi.
