Hockey India will launch its centenary celebrations – marking 100 years of Indian hockey – on November 7 at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in New Delhi. Organised in association with the Sports Authority of India (SAI), the event will mark the beginning of a series of initiatives celebrating the sport’s illustrious history while laying the groundwork for its future growth. Today, Olympians Zafar Iqbal, Jagbir Singh, Dilip Tirkey and World Cup winner Ashok Kumar gathered at the National Stadium as Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Dr Mansukh Mandaviya formally announced the celebrations.The occasion also commemorates the founding of the Indian Hockey Federation on November 7, 1925. As part of the celebrations, over 1000 hockey matches will be played simultaneously across 500 districts nationwide, involving more than 36,000 players.