Wizcraft to handle World Series Hockey opening ceremony

MUMBAI: India?s leading event management firm Wizcraft has been appointed to conceptualise and produce the opening ceremony for the Bridgestone World Series Hockey in Chandigarh on 29 February.

Wizcraft has organised the opening ceremonies of mega sports events like the 2011 World Cup, IPL and 2010 Commonwealth Games.

The opening ceremony will feature Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan, singer Mika, performer Neha Dhupia, ?Rockstar? singer Harshdeep Kaur, and many others.

Bollywood superstar Saif Ali Khan said, "I look forward to being a part of the opening ceremony of World Series Hockey. The association of Agent Vinod with this action-packed event was more of an emotional reason as my grandfather, Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, represented India in hockey. Our national sport has been ignored for a while and an initiative like this will ensure the sport is given its due attention and will resonate well with the youth of India.?

Nimbus Sport COO Yannick Colaco said, ?We have put together a star-studded opening ceremony to match the scale of any global sporting event. This is a first for Hockey in India and the grand opening will be a perfect cocktail of unmatched entertainment and top drawer sporting action. Wizcraft has extensive experience in putting together international acts and has worked on the ICC World Cup and IPL. We are going to dazzle the audience in the stadium and viewers across the world with a spectacular opening ceremony.?

Wizcraft International Director Sabbas Joseph said, ?This is just the boost Hockey required and I am glad Wizcraft will play an important role in launching a landmark sporting property like WSH.?

The Bridgestone World Series Hockey will be held from 29 February to 2 April.

The eight venues for the inaugural edition of the league are Bangalore, Bhopal, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Jalandhar, Mumbai and Pune. Chandigarh Comets will face-off against Bhopal Badshahs in the first tie of the tournament on their home ground.