National hockey put off

Blame it on H1N1 virus. The jinxed national hockey championship will be a non-starter. The championship, scheduled to be held here from September 13 to 27, has been postponed due to swine flu. The postponement comes days after the Hockey India shifted the national camp to Bangalore from Pune.

Maharashtra Hockey Association secretary Ikram Khan said that the Nationals have been postponed indefinitely. “The tournament has been postponed as of now,” he said.

Hockey India secretary general Mohammed Aslam Khan said the association will decide on the new dates later. He, however, ruled out changing the venue.