Hockey
Indian men's hockey team returns home to rousing welcome after Olympics medal
Indian men's hockey team arrived in Delhi to a rousing welcome from fans and officials after winning bronze medal at Paris Olympics.
The Indian Men’s Hockey Team returned from an Olympics campaign filled with new records to a rousing welcome at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi on Saturday.
The 16-member squad, which boasted 11 members from the Bronze winning Team in the Tokyo Olympics, created history by winning back-to-back medals for the first time since the 1972 Olympics in Munich.
Greeted upon arrival by family and hordes of fans, Harmanpreet Singh failed to contain his emotions, “It is very heart-warming to see Indian fans come out to receive and congratulate us for the Bronze medal at Paris 2024 Olympics. The Team left no stone unturned to prepare for the Olympics and to see your efforts bear fruit, to see the whole country rejoice in our victory, is an inexplicable feeling,” he said.
India stepped up in terms of performances at Paris that saw them defeat Australia by 3-2, for the first time after 52 years in the Olympics.
They pulled out another rabbit from the hat in the Quarter Finals, an unreal performance by every single member of the Team against Great Britain, where they defended with a man down for over 40 minutes to force penalty shootouts and win by 4-2, courtesy of heroics from PR Sreejesh.
25-year-old Vice Captain and two-time Bronze medallist Hardik Singh highlighted the camaraderie in the squad saying,” The trust we had in each other, the unshakeable belief that a teammate will step right up to cover up if you miss a step, is what pushed us to always give our best on the field. I think the match against Great Britain was when it shined through. The midfielders had the forwards’ back, the defenders supported the midfielders, and if all else failed we had the big man, PR Sreejesh, between the sticks who bailed us out on numerous occasions.”
“The Paris 2024 Olympics turned out to be an unforgettable experience, we will cherish these memories for some time to come. With this Bronze medal, the Team has proved that Indian Hockey is back on track. We are a force to be reckoned with and on our day, we can be unstoppable. All that we need is belief in our Team and the unwavering support of Indian hockey fans. So, I request them to continue loving hockey, continue supporting us and we will win it all for you,” Captain Harmanpreet Singh signed off with a plea.
