The international hockey federation (FIH) on Friday announced that it has abandoned with immediate effect plans to trial a new version of taking penalty corners (PC).
“FIH has decided to abandon the penalty corner trials, particularly the format we proposed before. It will not be considered for trial anywhere. But at the same time I had already instructed to have an evaluation on further options. We are in big favour to keep penalty corners in the same format. If there will be a change, it will be around the same format but in more dynamic ways,” FIH president Tayyab Ikram said here.
The proposed PC rule was to see the injector push the ball to the stopper at the 23m line instead of the top of the striking circle. The PC specialist would then have to push it back into the ‘D’ as a goal in hockey can only be scored from inside the semi-circle. The rule was being trialled as a safety measure to protect the first rushers and defenders.
“But we will not compromise on any measure which could lead to dangerous play and will challenge the safety of our athletes,” said Ikram.
The now abandoned PC proposal met with opposition from several quarters as penalty corner is the showpiece of a hockey game.
“There was no pressure at all (to abandon the trials). It is a genuine evaluation. We want to keep penalty corners as compact as possible because it is not only enhancing goal scoring but also adding glamour to our sport,” he said.
“But we will continue to collect data to see what causes more injuries – on the field or during penalty corners.”
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