An unforgettable day for 250 kids

Cheering, dancing and curious looks when entering the Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium, Rourkela. January 16 was a special day for 250 boys and girls and trainers from the grassroots program in Jharkhand. They would witness a hockey match at the World Cup for the first time. An unforgettable day with a match between the Netherlands and New Zealand.

Five buses departed from Simdega and Khunti, places in Jharkhand state, and were colorfully filled with blue-orange Bovelander T-shirts. For many of the children from Jharkhand, in addition to going to a real hockey match for the first time, it was also the first time they crossed the border with another state, in this case into Odisha.

Among the spectators were also Kim van Leeuwen and Vineet Lakra. Kim trains the trainers and gives coaching courses on behalf of the Bovelander Foundation. Vineet is the manager of the grassroots and RDC hockey programs in Khunti and Simdega. He works at CInI, the local implementing party of the hockey programs.

The enthusiasm radiated from the children’s faces as they entered the stadium. The children captured these moments and took pictures of everything they saw around them. “The blue fields were a real surprise for the children, as they had only seen the blue fields as coach boards during their training,” says Vineet. “You could see some children dreaming, they could already see themselves playing in the stadium,” says Kim. Others were impressed to see how fast the game moves.

It was clear that this experience had a great impact on the children. This will certainly influence their own motivation and inspiration to further develop as hockey players. Kim and Vineet consider this trip not only a ‘once in a lifetime experience’ because of the competition, but also because of the journey there. It was a great opportunity for the children, because it was relatively close to their hometown, but they simply did not have the means to go there. This was really seen as an outing that made this day even more unforgettable day.

After the game, the young hockey players were going to meet some players of the Netherlands. They were very enthusiastic and stood close to the fences for highfives, signatures and selfies. They loved it. A beautiful group photo was taken that portrays the day very well; many enthusiastic, passionate and inspired children and coaches.

On behalf of the Bovelander Foundation, we like to thank everyone who helped us with this trip. Our donors – small and large, the Bovelander Foundation Youth Ambassadors, the Dutch Embassy in India, the Netherlands team and the supervisors who accompanied us.

Watch the video of the trip below.