Hockey5s can be game-changer, but won't let it take over 11-a-side: FIH

The Indian hockey fraternity also appears excited to see the new 'avtar' of the game, which, it feels, would attract the youth towards the sport. Following India's success in Lausanne, where the team won a Hockey5s event earlier this month, the murmurs began over the future of traditional format. But FIH CEO Thierry Weil made it clear that Hockey 5s is just an addition to the traditional format to make the game more popular.

"Hockey 5s is definitely a welcome addition to the traditional version of the game. All we need right now is a much-needed boost that the game of hockey deserves and Hockey 5s is there to provide it," Weil told PTI in an exclusive interview. "We are extremely hopeful that the steady emergence of Hockey5s will immensely benefit hockey in the years to come.

That said, we will never let Hockey 5s take precedence over the traditional version of the game. We will never let that happen. "Rather, Hockey 5s will be a gateway to the age-old format.

The shortest format, once implemented regularly, will bring in a massive change to the game of hockey. We have understood that and that is reason, we are eagerly promoting Hockey 5s," the FIH CEO insisted. Weil believes both the formats can co-exist, which will definitely be a boon for the game.

"The birth of Hockey 5s is a brilliant tale of evolution that hockey as a sport has witnessed over the last few years. This can be a game-changer in the coming days. If one closely tracks the evolution of hockey, it is difficult to find any radical change.