Four members of Ultimate Kho Kho Champion Odisha Juggernauts get rousing welcome in hometown

Balasore: Four players of Ultimate Kho Kho Champion Odisha Juggernauts received a rousing welcome in their hometown here today after the victorious squad returned to Odisha.

Of six Odia players in Odisha Juggernauts team, four were from Balasore district. They were Jagannath Murmu, Lipun Mukhi, Siddheswar Tudu and Sukant Singh.

With drums resounded from the sky, the four players along with their coach Malay Ranjan Behera received a warm welcome a Balasore Railway Station on Thursday. The district sports association’s general secretary Abhay Mohapatra, joint secretaries Kartik Chandra Nayak, Jagdish Chandra Behera, Sadique Ali Khan, Pradeep Kumar Das, sports instructors and senior sportspersons were present at the event.

Odisha Juggernauts team had returned to the state on Monday with coveted Ultimate Kho Kho Champions trophy. The Odisha government-sponsored team clinched the inaugural title of Ultimate Kho Kho after beating Telugu Yoddhas 46-45 in a thrilling final at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Pune on Sunday. The winning team was awarded Rs 1 crore prize money.

Odisha Sports and Youth Services Joint Secretary and Odisha Juggernauts CEO Ranjit K Parida and other officials of the department had received the Head Coach, Ashwani Kumar Sharma and the entire team of Odisha Juggernauts that scripted history at Ultimate Kho Kho, India’s first ever professional Kho Kho League.