Hockey
With 100 days to Paris Olympics, Indian men's hockey team targets gold
Captain Harmanpreet Singh and his deputy Hardik believe that the Indian men's hockey team is ready for the challenges in 2024 Paris Olympics.
Indian Hockey Team(Source: Hockey India)
With just 100 days remaining until the start of their journey at the Paris Olympics, the Indian Men’s Hockey Team has their eyes set on the ultimate prize- The gold medal.
India has formidable challenges on the way as standing in their path are the reigning Olympic Champions Belgium (World No. 2), along with tough contenders like Australia (World No. 3), Argentina (World No. 7), New Zealand (World No. 10), and Ireland (World No. 12).
Securing at least a top-two finish in Pool B is imperative to progress to the Quarter-Finals. Meanwhile, Pool A comprises the world's top-ranked team, Netherlands, alongside Germany, Great Britain, Spain, South Africa, and hosts France, setting the stage for an intense battle in the 12-team men's hockey tournament at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
The Indian Men’s Hockey Team will begin their campaign on the 27th of July against New Zealand, followed by a match against Argentina on the 29th of July before facing Ireland and Belgium on the 30th of July and 1st of August. They will play their last group stage game against the mighty Australians on 2nd August.
Talking about the preparation, skipper Harmanpreet said, "We just returned from the intense Australia tour, after a short break we will hit the grind again. With only 100 days to go until the Paris Olympics, the excitement in the team is growing. The unity of our team continues to grow, fuelled by our shared goal to clinch the Gold medal. Craig Fulton, our Chief Coach, keeps us on track with the Olympics countdown in our weekly schedule. Every day counts, every practice, every drill—it's all building towards that moment on the Olympic stage. All in all, we're hungry, we're focused, and we're ready to shine.”
Vice Captain Hardik Singh also weighed in saying, “The Australia test highlighted the areas that we need to improve and upon our return to camp we aim to make sure that we iron out any remaining issues well in time for the Paris 2024 Olympics. We will give our best on each of the 100 remaining days to make sure that our pursuit for the Gold medal at the Olympics is successful.”
