Page 4 - Hockey

Asian Games: Odisha announces cash awards Rs 5 lakh for each of hockey team

A day after Odisha government announced a cash award of Rs 5 lakh each to players and staff members of Indian Men's Hockey Team, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Saturday said Odia defender Amit Rohidas will also be given an additional Rs 1.5 crore for his role in country's historic gold win at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou. Congratulating the Indian men's hockey team for winning gold at the Asian Games, Patnaik expressed his heartfelt congratulations to Amit Rohidas, acknowledging his outstanding performance and calling him an "inspiration" for youngsters not only across Odisha but also throughout India. "Amit Rohidas' remarkable achievements exemplify the spirit of perseverance and excellence. He has become a symbol of hope and pride for aspiring athletes in our state and beyond. His success story resonates with every individual striving to achieve greatness, and we are immensely proud of his accomplishments," Patnaik said in a statement. Describing Amit Rohidas as a "true son

Hockey team not only won game but also hearts of countless Indians: PM Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded Indian men's hockey team for winning the gold medal in the Asian Games, saying their unwavering commitment, passion and synergy have not only won the game but also the hearts of countless Indians. "An exhilarating Gold Medal triumph by our Men's Hockey Team at the Asian Games! Congratulations to the team for this outstanding performance. This team's unwavering commitment, passion and synergy have not only won the game but also the hearts of countless Indians. This victory is a testament to their spirit. Best wishes for the endeavours ahead," he posted on X. Skipper Harmanpreet Singh led admirably as the Indian men's hockey team mauled defending champions Japan 5-1 to reclaim the Asian Games gold in Hangzhou in China, their fourth in the continental showpiece, after nine years and qualify for next year's Paris Olympics on Friday. The prime minister congratulated several medal winners for their excellent show in the games. Praising Aman Sehrawat fo

Asian Games October 5 schedule: India vs China in hockey SF, medal events

India's historic run at the Asian Games 2023 will continue on October 5 when the women's hockey team will face China in the semi-final, women's and men's archers and wrestlers will also be in action

Asian Games: Indian men's hockey storms into final, defeats South Korea 5-3

The Indian men's hockey team will face the winner of the other semi-final match between China and Japan in the gold medal match on Friday

Asian Games 2023: 3 hat-tricks as India beat Hong Kong 13-0 in women hockey

Experienced striker Vandana Katariya, vice-captain Deep Grace Ekka and Deepika slammed a hat-trick each as India stormed into the semifinals of the women's hockey competition at the Asian Games with a 13-0 drubbing of Hong Kong in their final pool match here on Tuesday. Vandana (2nd, 16th, 48th minutes) scored three field goals, while Deep Grace (11th, 34th, 42nd) converted three penalty corners for India. Deepika (4th, 54th, 58th) was not to be left behind as she also emulated the feat of her senior teammates in India's rout of Hong Kong. Sangita Kumari (27th, 55th), Monika (7th) and Navneet Kaur (58th) also registered their names on the scoresheet. India are on top of Pool A with 10 points from four games and have much superior goal difference than second-placed side South Korea who have seven points with a match in hand. South Korea take on Malaysia in their final group league match later on Tuesday. Two teams from each pool qualify for the semifinals. It was a complete dominat

Asian Games 2023: India eye focus against South Korea in men's hockey semis

Untested in the pool stages, the Indian men's hockey team would look to guard against complacency against an unpredictable but dangerous South Korea in the semifinal of the Asian Games here on Wednesday. Clear favourites to clinch the gold here which will guarantee a berth to next year's Paris Olympics, world no.3 India looked menacing in the pool stages, scoring as many as 58 goals and conceding just five. The Harmanpreet Singh-led side looked impressive from the start and scored goals at will to outplay Uzbekistan 16-0, Singapore 16-1, defending champions Japan 4-2, arch-rivals Pakistan 10-2 and Bangladesh 12-0 in its Pool A matches. India were in a similar position heading into the semifinals at the 2018 Asian Games but went down 6-7 to Malaysia in shoot-off after the match ended in 2-2 draw. While India last won the Asian Games gold in 2014 in Incheon, Korea's last title came way back in 2006 Doha. India captain Harmanpreet is aware about the job at hand. "We have started str

Asian Games Highlights, Day 7: IND thrash PAK in hockey, Squash; medals- 38

Asian Games 2023, Day 7 Highlights: India thrashed Pakistan 10-2 in hockey and beat them 3-2 in Squash to win the men's team gold. The contingent finished with 10 Gold, 14 Silver and 14 Bronze medals

Asian Games 2023 October 01 schedule: India event timings, streaming

India will hope for medals from the Shooting range and athletics field on Sunday, October 01, 2023, which will also be the eighth day of the Asian Games 2023 in Hangzhou, China

Asian Games 2023 September 29 schedule: India event timings, streaming

India will hope for a rich medal haul from the athletics contingent who will begin their campaign on Friday, Day 6 of the Asian Games 2023. Saketh Myeneni and Ramkumar Ramanathan will play for gold

Oman to host hockey Olympic Qualifier in place of Pakistan, says FIH

Oman will now host one of the men's hockey Olympic Qualifiers after the world body (FIH) withdrew the tournament from Pakistan due to infighting between the national federation and the country's Sports Board. The International Hockey Federation announced that tournament will be held in Muscat from January 15 to 21 next year. The other three FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers will be played in China (women's - January 15-21 2024) and Spain (women's and men's - January 13-21). "Following FIH's decision to withdraw the hosting of one of the Men's FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers from Pakistan due to the recent developments in the governance situation of the Pakistan Hockey Federation, this event will now be hosted by another Asian nation, namely Oman, which had already expressed an interest to bid at an early stage, during the bidding phase," the International Hockey Federation said in a statement. Six women's and as many men's teams will qualify for Paris Olympics through these Olympic ...

Asian Games 2023 September 28 schedule: India event timings, streaming

India's hopes will once again be pinned on Shooters to increase the medal haul alongside Roshibina Devi in the Wushu final. Indian men's hockey and football teams will also be in action

Asian Games: Women's Hockey team gears up for match against Singapore

Since 2014, the Indian Women's Hockey Team has faced Singapore three times and won each time, with their most recent victory coming during the Women's Asia Cup 2022

More participation of women will move the country forward: Rani Rampal

Indian hockey player Rani Rampal said increased participation of women will help the nation achieve faster growth. She expressed happiness over the Women's Reservation Bill being passed in Parliament

Asiad 2023: Harmanpreet Singh, Lovlina chosen as India's flag-bearers

Hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh and Olympic medallist boxer Lovlina Borgohain will be the flag-bearers of the Indian contingent during the opening ceremony of the Asian Games in Hangzhou on September 23. The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) took the decision on Wednesday to have joint flag-bearers for the continental showpiece. A total of 655 Indian athletes are competing in the Asian Games this time, which is the largest contingent ever. "We arrived at the decision after much deliberation today," Indian contingent Chef de Mission Bhupender Singh Bajwa told PTI. "This time we will have two flag-bearers leading the contingent at the Asian Games -- hockey captain Harmanpreet Singh and boxer Lovlina Borgohain," added Bajwa, who is also Wushu Association of India chief. Star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra had done the honours at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games. Lovlina had won a bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics in the 69kg category. This year, she won gold in 7

Asiad 2023: Indian hockey goalkeeper Sreejesh eyes direct berth to Olympics

At 35, PR Sreejesh is standing at the twilight of his career and the Hangzhou Asian Games is most likely his last appearance at the continental showpiece. But the veteran Indian hockey goalkeeper is determined to win the gold at Hangzhou to give himself a chance to earn a direct entry to the Paris Olympics next year, and do better there winning a yellow-coated medal. Eight-time champions India had won a historic bronze at the Tokyo Olympics after 41 years beating Germany 5-4 in the play-off match. "Obviously, next year's Olympics is my main target and I want to change the colour of my medal there. But having said that, we need to qualify through the Asian Games (to Olympics) so that we get ample time to prepare ourselves," Sreejesh told PTI. Sreejesh reiterated that age is just a number for a sportsperson and gave the example of tennis great Novak Djokovic in this regard. "I am right now taking one game, one tournament at a time. As (Novak) Djokovic said, 35 is the new 25. So, I'

Asiad 2023: Well prepared Indian women's hockey team leaves for Hangzhou

The Indian women's hockey team is well prepared and will look to seal an Olympic berth with a good show at the Asian Games, said skipper Savita ahead of the side's departure for Hangzhou, China. The Indian women's hockey team, which is placed in Pool A along with Korea, Malaysia, Hong Kong China and Singapore, left for China on Tuesday night. The quadrennial event gets underway in Hangzhou on September 23. India will open their campaign at the prestigious event against Singapore on September 27. Japan, China, Thailand, Kazakhstan, and Indonesia are placed in Pool B. The top two teams from each Pool will qualify for the semifinals. The gold medal winning team will directly qualify for next year's Paris Olympics. "We have had a long and strenuous National Camp where we worked on all the areas where we need to improve. We have formulated our strategies as per our strengths and we have studied our opponents as well, thoroughly to understand their styles of play," Savita said in a ...

Asiad 2023: Indian women's hockey coach says handling pressure will be key

Indian women's hockey coach Janneke Schopman believes handling pressure will be crucial for her team as it will enter the upcoming Asian Games as one of "favourites". "I believe the mindset the players have as individuals and as a team will make the difference. Can we perform under pressure and deal with the circumstances handed over to us? "We have talked about this over the past couple of months and what it means to not be the underdogs like we were in Tokyo but being the favourites," Schopman said on the latest episode of Hockey Te Charcha, a podcast series launched by Hockey India. "We have spoken about the expectations from this team. We have also addressed what dangers are out there that might cause distraction, and trip us up, and how we can deal with the same." The Dutch coach said if her team plays to its potential, it can win win the gold in Hangzhou and qualify directly for next year's Paris Olympics. "It is important to enjoy the journey as well. I hope we win; I think

Saga of sacrifices inspires Indian women hockey team for Asiad, Olympics

If one saw her mother working tirelessly for earning Rs 800 a month, the other endured the agony of being unemployed for almost a decade, while another learnt the game by playing with bamboo sticks. To Savita Punia, Neha Goyal and Nikki Pradhan hockey brought solace, and these Indian women's team players did not let personal turmoil affect their game. Also plenty of sacrifices were made during their journey to the top, making them hungrier for success. They had their 'Chak de' moment in the Tokyo Olympics where they missed a podium finish by a whisker, and now they are on a mission to realise an unfulfilled dream. The first step would be to secure direct qualification to the Paris Olympics through the upcoming Hangzhou Asian Games. They are not leaving any stone unturned, including giving up on their favourite food, in order to improve their willpower and fitness and win gold in Hangzhou. "We know that there are immense expectations from us post Tokyo Olympics and this team is cap

Hockey Olympic qualifiers: FIH withdraws hosting rights from Pakistan

The International Hockey Federation (FIH) on Tuesday withdrew hosting rights of the Olympic Qualifiers from Pakistan, slated to be held next January. The FIH decision came as a result of the infighting between the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) and the state-owned Pakistan Sports Board (PSB). The FIH, while taking away our hosting rights, made it clear it was convinced that the sports board and government were not willing to cooperate with the PHF in the successful hosting of the event, said an inside in the PHF. The decision has come as a big blow to Pakistan hockey, which had got the rights to host an international event after more than a decade. The PHF had picked Lahore as the venue to host the event. However, recent attempts by the PSB to interfere in affairs of the PHF and bring in its preferred officials into the federation have led to chaos. Several former Olympians, encouraged by the government's ministry of inter provincial coordination and PSB, have been trying to st

Indian hockey team doesn't want to leave China with regrets: Abhishek

Rising Indian hockey forward Abhishek, who is set for his first major Asian tournament in the upcoming Hangzhou Games, says his aim is to play with confidence and leave China without "any regrets". The 24-year-old has come up the hard way and made a delayed breakthrough in his career but he has cemented his place in the Indian side with some stellar performances -- 18 goals in 48 appearances. "I am ecstatic to have been named to the squad, and I am eager to give my all on the pitch. The 19th Asian Games Hangzhou 2022 is a big tournament, and we're preparing accordingly," he said in a Hockey India release. "We'll play with confidence, and our goal is to leave China with no regrets at the end of the tournament," he added. Asked about his team's preparations for the 19th Asian Games, Abhishek said, "We will face some good teams, and we are working very hard in training to make sure we are in the best physical and mental shape when we step onto the pitch." India are placed in Pool A a