The Beighton Cup is the oldest field Hockey tournament held in India. The tournament was organised for the first time at Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) in the year 1895 and is being organised annually, since then, usually conducted on the Mohun Bagan ground on the Maidan in Kolkata. The tournament is counted amongst the most prestigious hockey tournaments in the world. The Beighton Cup was named after the then Legal Remembrancer of the Government of Bengal, Mr. T. D. Beighton. The Indian Football Association was in charge of organising the Beighton Cup in the first few years. However, the tournament is organised by the Bengal Hockey Association, at present.

Origin of Beighton Cup
The inception of Beighton Cup is closely related with the history of Hockey in India. Hockey was brought to India by the British rulers during the later half of the 19th century. Hockey was first played in an organised manner in Kolkata and the first Hockey club of India was also established in Kolkata. The Beighton Cup was organised as a part of popularising Hockey in India and it has so far played a major role in spreading hockey throughout India. The Beighton Cup led the way for inauguration of Calcutta Hockey League in the year 1905.

Almost all the major hockey clubs of India during the late 1800s took part in the Beighton Cup in 1895. The clubs like the Calcutta Naval Volunteers Club (now known as Calcutta Rangers Club), Calcutta Customs, Jhansi Heroes, etc. were the premier participants of the tournament in the initial years. Among these teams, the Calcutta Rangers Club has the distinction of winning the Beighton Cup for 9 times, including the inaugural edition. During the 1940s and 1950s, Bengal had excellent teams in Kolkata like Customs and Port Commissioners, and Bengal-Nagpur Railway in Kharagpur.

Recent Developments of Beighton Cup
The Beighton Cup is now played among the teams coming from different governmental organisations and corporate houses. The teams like Indian Airlines, the Border Security Force, the Punjab and Sind Bank, the Army XI, the Indian Oil Corporation, the Punjab Police, the Central Reserve Police Force, the Central Industrial Security Force, etc. are some of the prominent participants of the Beighton Cup in the recent years. The winners of the recent tournaments include Central Industrial Security Force, Chandigarh in 2001, Punjab Police in 2002, Border Security Force, Jalandhar in 2003, Punjab and Sind Bank in 2004, Border Security Force, Jalandhar in 2005, Punjab and Sind Bank in 2006 and Indian Airlines in 2007.

The Beighton Cup has made a huge contribution to Indian Hockey, since its inception. There was a time when the Indian national hockey team was selected based on the players` performances in this tournament only. The tournament has also given birth to numerous extremely talented Indian hockey players. INFORMATION: indianetzone.com

Beighton Cup is a field hockey tournament. Instituted in 1895, it is organised by Bengal Hockey Association and is usually held on the Mohun Bagan ground on the Maidan in Kolkata (earlier called Calcutta) in India. The Beighton Cup was presented by T.D. Beighton, Legal Remembrancer of the Government of Bengal, and was run initially by the Indian Football Association. The Calcutta Hockey League took off in 1905.

British officers popularised the game amongst soldiers in India; hockey, as an organised sport, originated in Kolkata. The Anglo-Indian clubs of the time, most significantly, the Calcutta Naval Volunteers Club, now the Calcutta Rangers Club deserve a big share of the credit. Not only did Rangers Club win the Beighton Cup nine times, including in its inaugural year, it was directly responsible for two of the country’s Olympic gold medals. When the Indian Olympic Committee did not have the funds to send the Indian team in 1932 and 1936, it was the generosity of the Rangers Club, rich with funds from its four-times-a-year sweepstakes, that ensured that the team set sail for Los Angeles and Berlin.

Some credit for popularising the game in India goes to the Irish Christian Brothers. Many of them were so skillful that they would have walked into the Indian team had it not been for their vocation. However, they passed on their skills to the boys who studied in the many schools that they ran, up in the hills and on the plains. St. James’ School won the Beighton Cup way back in 1900. INFORMATION: Wikipedia