In fact it was Odisha’s hour to feel proud for the instance hosting the biggest men’s sporting event of the year.The Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik officially declares the 2018 FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup open during the grand opening ceremony at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar in presence of all 16 captains of the participating countries.
During his inaugural address FIH President Narinder Batra congratulated Odisha for being the first Indian state to sponsor a tournament of this magnitude.He also added saying Bhubaneswar’s Kalinga Stadium would be considered as one of the top three stadiums in the World and Bhubaneswar is going to be recognised as the Sports Capital of India.He also extended his special gratitude to CM Nabeen Patnaik who was laid the initiative from the front for this big event.
The state government also not left any opportunity introducing Odisha and showcasing the pristine beauty and the mystery of the land to the world.
Two of the India’s biggest superstars from Bollywood Shahrukh Khan and Madhuri Dixit with the finest musician of the country AR Rahman were the star performers at the star-studded night.
Bollywood star, Shahrukh presented over 2.35 crore collected heartbeats to the captains of the hockey teams participating at flagship FIH event. “Sattar minute hain tumhare pass,” This seventy minutes nobody will take from you’with this iconic dialogue from ‘Chak De India’ Shahrukh left the stage for the remaining ceremony to take place.
Post event the excited Shah Rukh Khan tweeted “Thank u Odisha for all the excitement, love & the grand beginning to the World Cup Hockey. @naveen_odisha it was lovely to meet u sir. To all the players have a great tournament….& yes..Chak De India!”
Conveying a powerful message of ‘oneness of humanity’ was the highlight of the sparkling opening ceremony of the 2018 Hockey World Cup. Madhuri portrayed herself as ‘Mother Earth’.She joined by 1000 artists aiming to give message of a ‘United World’
Oscar-winning music director A R Rahman also enthralled the audience with a live performance of Jai Hind Jai India — the official song and tune of the World Cup.
