Following a 13-year stint, Hockey India’s (HI) first chief govt officer (CEO) Elena Norman resigned on Tuesday owing to federation politics. “Of course, it’s disappointing and sad. But it has become too difficult (for me to continue) now. It is a good time to move on,” stated the Australian. It has been reliably learnt that Norman didn’t obtain her wage, already lowered final yr, for the final three months and solely obtained it final week after she despatched a authorized discover. Following the discover and HI’s authorized counsel stepping in, the NSF lastly launched her remuneration.
Elena Norman resigned as CEO of Hockey India after practically 13-year tenure(PTI)
Norman was employed as CEO in 2011 beneath Narinder Batra, who was then the secretary normal of HI which had simply been recognised as the game’s governing physique after years of administrative turmoil within the Indian Hockey Federation (IHF), previously the governing physique of hockey in India.
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She had a easy run beneath Batra, who was HI president from 2014-16 after which he grew to become the International Hockey Federation (FIH) president in 2016 and likewise the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president in 2017.
But following a courtroom case filed by 1975 World Cup-winner Aslam Sher Khan pertaining to administrative problems with HI beneath Batra and Norman, Batra resigned from FIH, IOA and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in 2022 which led to HI elections the place former India skipper Dilip Tirkey and Bhola Nath Singh have been elected as president and secretary normal. While Norman has had the assist of Tirkey, it has not been the identical from different sections of HI.
“There are two factions in HI and they think and operate differently and that’s just made it difficult for me to function. From that perspective it doesn’t make sense. You keep putting yourself under pressure. It is a decision I haven’t taken lightly. It is something I have been thinking of for a long time,” stated Norman, whose final working day at HI can be Thursday following which she can be returning to Australia.
While the problems had been ongoing for a while, the ultimate nail within the coffin was Norman not receiving her wage. “I want to specific my gratitude for Elena’s time and dedication. Not solely because the President of Hockey India but additionally as a former participant and avid hockey fanatic, I need to formally acknowledge and lengthen my honest gratitude for her outstanding contributions over the past 12-13 years,” said Tirkey.
While Norman had explained her reasons to the HI Executive Board (EB), Tirkey also sent a mail to the EB elucidating that she was finding it difficult to work given the circumstances.
“Her dedication and efforts have played a pivotal role in propelling Hockey India and Indian hockey to the commendable position they hold today. I wish her great success in all her future endeavours.”
Norman’s resignation comes 4 days after Janneke Schopman put down her papers as chief coach of the Indian girls’s workforce which did not qualify for Paris 2024. The Dutch lady had additionally cited that she was supported by Tirkey and Norman however not by others in HI.
During Norman’s time as CEO, the Indian males’s workforce clinched an Olympic medal, a bronze, to finish a 41-year lengthy wait whereas the ladies completed an unprecedented fourth. Under her management, HI hosted two consecutive editions of males’s World Cup in 2018 and 2023, two Junior Men’s World Cup in 2016 and 2021 and 5 editions of Hockey India League (HIL).
During her tenure, HI additionally hosted a number of occasions like Champions Trophy and World League Finals in 2015 and 2017, Olympic Qualifiers in 2019 and 2024 in addition to Pro League.
Norman was additionally on the forefront of bringing girls’s hockey to limelight, offering them equal amenities as males together with money awards recognising standout performances in worldwide occasions by way of HI Annual Awards. She was notably instrumental within the success of the ladies’s workforce that certified for Rio 2016, a primary Olympic qualification in 36 years.
Source: www.hindustantimes.com
