Belgian hockey player Elliot Van Strydonck is unhappy about India hosting the Hockey World Cup for the third time at a stretch. In a recent interview with a newspaper, he alleged that India managed to host the mega event for the third time due to the “power of money”.
Apart from the ongoing event in Bhubaneswar, India hosted the World Cup back in 2010 (New Delhi) and 2018 (Bhubaneswar).
According to Strydonck, it is “unfair to sporting fairness” and it’s “regrettable that India still hosts such an event”.
He made the remark when the Belgium newspaper La Libre asked: ‘How is it possible that a sport agrees to play three of its last four Worlds in the same country?’
Strydonck told Belgium newspaper La Libre as quoted by The Indian Express.: “The power of money. Belgians know India and its obligations well. They must be careful with water and food. They have their routine. It is regrettable that India still hosts such an event. But India is the only country that can fill stadiums with 20,000 seats every day. The atmosphere is guaranteed. In addition, it is the only nation that can count on global sponsors like Hero or Odisha. The choice makes sense financially, but unfair to sporting fairness. The Red Lions have won everything in 4 years. However, the media coverage of hockey remains too limited here [in Belgium].”
[the answer is in French, one of the three languages in Belgium along with Dutch and German. “Le pouvoir de l’argent. Les Belges connaissent bien l’Inde et ses obligations. Ils doivent être vigilants avec l’eau et l’alimentation. Ils ont leur routine. On peut regretter que l’Inde accueille encore un tel événement. Mais, l’Inde est le seul pays qui peut remplir tous les jours des stades de 20 000 places. L’ambiance est garantie. En plus, elle est la seule nation qui peut compter sur des sponsors mondiaux comme Hero ou Odisha. Le choix est logique sur un plan financier, mais injuste pour l’équité sportive. Les Red Lions ont tout gagné en 4 ans. Pourtant, la médiatisation du hockey reste trop limitée chez nous.”]
He also placed his team Belgium as the “biggest favourites” to win the World Cup and picked Australia as the second favourite. According to him, he placed India as the third favourite.
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