The captains of the 12 participating teams of the men's field hockey World Cup pose with the cup in front of India Gate monument in New Delhi Friday. (L-R) South Korea's Jong Bok Cha, Australia's Jamie Dwyer, England's Barry Middleton, Germany's Maximilian Muller, Canada's Ken Pereira, India's Rajpal Singh, Pakistan's Zeeshan Ashraf, Spain's Pol Amat, Argentina's Matias Vila, New Zealand's Phillip Burrows, South Africa's Austin Smith and Netherlands' Teun De Noorije. – AP NEW DELHI – Olympic champion Germany will look to set aside security fears and focus on clinching its third straight world title when the men's hockey World Cup kicks off Sunday. Indian police have promised “foolproof” security for the 12-team event in New Delhi after a bomb blast in the western city of Pune this month killed 15 people and raised safety concerns for visiting teams. Tight security has been provided for the teams by organizers, who feared pull-outs, and spectators have been barred from entering the Dhyan Chand National Hockey Stadium until the start of the tournament. “Most of our team members were worried about the security here. But the security report that we got gave us a lot of relief. We are happy with the security provided to us,” New Zealand captain Phillip Burrows told reporters Friday. “There were serious concerns about putting hockey players where their life is threatened when all they want to do is play hockey,” England team manager Andy Halliday said of the media reports. “So we went through a rigid investigation of the security arrangements and we've been happy with what we see here.” Security staff, including police and a paramilitary force, are covering the team hotels – where all staff and guests must pass through metal detectors and security checks – travel routes and match venues. Top-ranked Germany and favorite Australia have been drawn in opposite groups. Australia beat the Olympic champion to win a record tenth Champions Trophy title in December. “I think Australia is everyone's favorite for this tournament,” Germany captain Maximillian Muller admitted. “Of course, we are fancying our chances, but I think India and Pakistan also can be expected to spring surprises because they are more used to playing in the conditions here.” Germany, which beat Australia in the previous two World Cup finals, faces Netherlands, South Korea, New Zealand, Canada and Argentina in the pool stage. World No. 2 Australia, which last won the World Cup in 1986, has been grouped with host India, Olympic silver medalist Spain, England, Pakistan and South Africa. Eight-time Olympic champion India is hoping to revive its national game's fortunes after it failed to qualify for the Summer Games for the first time in Beijing two years ago. India's lone World Cup title came in 1975. Since then, India has slipped in the rankings, occupying the ninth, 10th and 11th positions in the last three World Cups. India won the last of its eight Olympic gold medals in the boycott-hit Moscow Olympics of 1980. Since then, it has not managed to even enter the semifinals of seven Olympics and World Cups spread over three decades. Pakistan is the most successful nation in World Cup history, winning the title four times, but its last triumph came in Sydney in 1994. India meets arch-rival Pakistan in a clash between the sport's former powerhouses that is expected to light up the opening day.
