National hockey tournament kicks off today

Bhadrapur : The first GP Koirala memorial national hockey tournament begins at the Mechi stadium today. Teams from all the provinces except Karnali province and a departmental team from Nepal Army are competing in the tournament to run until February 13. Member-secretary of National Sports Council Keshav Kumar Bista is scheduled to inaugurate the tournament.
The tournament is expected to cost Rs. 2 million.
It is the first time that a national-level hockey tournament is being held in the region. The tournament is being hosted by Nepal Hockey Association in collaboration with the National Sports Council.
Prior to this, a national level hockey tournament was held in Biratnagar in 1989. The tournament has been organised to promote the sport of hockey and produce hockey players at the province level, said the Association Secretary Ranjan Thapa.