NTHA opens girls’ wing in Jamshedpur, gives fresh push to women’s hockey in Jharkhand
PINAKI MAJUMDAR Jamshedpur, September 2: The Naval Tata Hockey Academy (NTHA) on Wednesday inaugurated its dedicated Girls’ Wing in Jamshedpur, marking a…
PINAKI MAJUMDAR
Jamshedpur, September 2: The Naval Tata Hockey Academy (NTHA) on Wednesday inaugurated its dedicated Girls’ Wing in Jamshedpur, marking a major expansion of opportunities for young women hockey players in Jharkhand and strengthening the state’s pathway to national and international competition.
A joint initiative of Tata Steel and Tata Trusts under the Hockey Ace Foundation (HAF), the new facility aims to develop female hockey players from the grassroots to the elite level by bringing high-performance coaching, sports science, education, nutrition, recovery and residential support together under one roof.
Dedicated high-performance facility for 30 players
The Girls’ Wing will accommodate 30 players in its first year, with the capacity set to increase to 35 from the second year.
The purpose-built facility includes a modern gymnasium, physiotherapy room, massage and recovery suites, a specialised central kitchen and canteen, a video-analysis room, audio-visual classrooms and dedicated offices for the technical team.
Residential facilities have also been created for players, wardens and coaching staff, providing a dedicated environment for training, education and overall athlete development.
Focus on creating opportunities for Jharkhand girls
The inauguration ceremony was attended by Chief Guest Ruchi Narendran and Guest of Honour M. M. Somaya, Olympic gold medallist and former captain of the Indian men’s hockey team.
- B. Sundara Ramam, Vice-President–Corporate Services, Tata Steel and Chairman of the Hockey Ace Foundation, senior HAF leadership, Tata Steel officials, coaches, international players and other dignitaries were also present.
Speaking on the occasion, Ruchi Narendran said sport had always been an integral part of Tata Steel’s legacy and that the commitment continued through institutions such as NTHA.
She said the Girls’ Wing would provide young athletes with a safe, world-class environment in which they could learn, train and aspire to compete at the highest level.
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Jharkhand, she noted, has produced some of India’s finest hockey players, making it important to ensure that girls from the state receive the opportunities and support required to take their talent to the highest level.
“Every young player here should embrace this opportunity with pride and ambition,” she said, expressing hope that the facility would help young athletes realise their sporting potential.
Three-tier pathway from grassroots to elite hockey
Somaya said the Hockey Ace Foundation had established a three-tier player-development structure, beginning with grassroots programmes and progressing through Regional Development Centres before players move to NTHA as a high-performance centre.
He stressed the importance of identifying talent at the age of 10-11 and nurturing players progressively through every stage of their development.
The integration of sports science at NTHA, he said, would further strengthen the academy’s high-performance ecosystem.
He also highlighted HAF’s focus on the 360-degree development of athletes, covering not only sporting ability but also their overall growth and preparation for life beyond the playing field.
Holistic development at the heart of new wing
B. Sundara Ramam described the Girls’ Wing as an important milestone in building a stronger and more inclusive hockey pathway.
“Developing a player requires much more than access to a hockey field. It requires the right coaching, sports science, education, nutrition, recovery and a supportive environment,” he said.
The new facility brings these elements together, he said, enabling young women athletes to pursue their sporting ambitions with greater confidence.
The objective, according to Sundara Ramam, is not merely to produce better hockey players but also to develop well-rounded individuals equipped to build meaningful lives beyond sport.
Strengthening Jharkhand’s women’s hockey pipeline
Over the years, HAF’s programmes in Jamshedpur and Bhubaneswar have helped nurture hockey talent, with several players progressing to national and international representation.
The dedicated Girls’ Wing is expected to strengthen that pipeline by providing promising female players with access to a residential and high-performance ecosystem specifically designed around their needs.
The initiative is particularly significant for Jharkhand, which has a long-standing hockey tradition and has produced several players who have represented India at the highest level.
By combining elite coaching with education, sports science, nutrition, recovery and residential support, NTHA aims to provide young athletes with the comprehensive ecosystem required to convert potential into sustained performance.
About Hockey Ace Foundation
The Hockey Ace Foundation, a joint initiative of Tata Steel and Tata Trusts, incorporates the Naval Tata Hockey Academy in Jamshedpur and the Odisha Naval Tata Hockey High-Performance Centre in Bhubaneswar.
The foundation focuses on developing hockey talent from the grassroots to the elite level through high-quality coaching, tactical video analysis, sports science and holistic player development, with the broader objective of strengthening India’s pipeline of talent for the national teams.
