Hockey Sees Bach Effect on Rio 2016

(ATR) International Hockey Federation CEO Kelly Fairweather tells Around the Rings he’s satisfied with Rio 2016’s preparations for his sport but organizers can’t afford any time slip-ups.

Following many months of concerns about the pace of progress, Fairweather said IOC president Thomas Bach’s visit to Brazil to meet with President Dilma Rousseff and 2016 leaders may have spurred some acceleration.

The FIH, along with representatives from the other 27 sports on the Summer Olympics program, met with Rio 2016 officials on the sidelines of the Sochi Games.

"I think all the federations, particularly in Deodoro [second Olympic Park], are aware of the tight timelines, but we had good meetings with Rio 2016 and representatives from government," he told ATR.

"I think the fact that Thomas was out there perhaps moved things along. We are seeing some positive signs."

In terms of the final hockey venue design and making decisions on suppliers, Fairweather said construction was scheduled to start in September on two competition pitches. Only 1,500 permanent seats are being built for the main 10,000-capacity arena, while the 5,000-seat venue is all temporary.

But with the June 12 to July 13 FIFA World Cup coming up, Fairweather warned that Brazil can ill afford to take its eye off Rio 2016 preparations.

"Time is a limited commodity, 870 days or something. There’s not much room for maneuver," he said.

Hockey’s Rio 2016 test event is slated for November 2015. A significant portion of temporary overlay for the Games will be done two or three months before the summer of 2016, he said.

"I am not that worried as long as we actually get going in September," the FIH official added, noting that any unforeseen obstacles could have a major impact.

"The bottom line is both parties have to make this work. We have got to find ways of working together."

The IOC’s Rio coordination commission will gain a better idea of how much work is still to be done at the two Olympic Parks when it holds its first check-up of 2014 in two weeks.

The 28 sports for Rio 2016 will hold further talks with Olympic chiefs at SportAccord in Belek, Turkey in April. Fairweather is heading out to Brazil on a fact-finding mission a few weeks after that.

He said SportAccord is "always important."

"It’s an opportunity for all of us to get together and have a discussion and exchange ideas with Rio 2016. You all get on the same page. We can get a lot of things done because everyone is there," he said.

Eight sports will be staged at the Deodoro Olympic Park. The site is also hosting rugby sevens's Olympic debut, equestrian, cycling (mountain bike and BMX), modern pentathlon, shooting, canoeing (slalom), and fencing.

But there are still uncertainties linked to the presentation and integration of sports on the site, which is a journey of up to 40 minutes from the Olympic Village.

"What we are looking at is not only construction of the venue, but how that fits into broader plans and operations for Deodoro, and that’s an additional challenge," Fairweather said.

He explained that the FIH had held "good discussions around that" with Rio 2016.

"We keep on pushing that aspect. The second Olympic Park has to act as a nice hub and be attractive to come to," he said.

At a board meeting in Lausanne next week, FIH leaders will revise their four-year strategy in a bid to grow the sport’s international profile.

Fairweather said Bach’s productive Olympic Agenda 2020 discussions in Sochi triggered a desire to review the sport’s administration.

"We have to adapt and be agile and nimble in how we tackle the next four to eight years," he added, which would include hockey examining "how to become more global and get more partnerships."

Written by Mark Bisson

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