Hockey
Men's hockey at Tokyo Olympics: Preview, Guide, Schedule, Indian players
Everything you need to know about men's hockey and Indian hockey players competing in the Tokyo Olympics 2020.
The modern hockey game emerged way back in the mid-18th century in England, but its roots go way back 4,000 years ago when the crude form of hockey was played in Egypt and Ethiopia around 1000BC. At present, hockey is a popular sport that enjoys a fan base around the globe.
Preview
The inaugural edition of Olympic men's hockey was held in 1908 in London, with only six countries- England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Germany, and France. It was on and off till 1928, but it has been a regular feature at the Olympics since then.
If you ask your ancestors which country dominated the hockey at Olympics, the answer would be India because the Indian hockey team was such a dominant force to beat. Also, they lead the all-time medals table in hockey with 11 medals, including eight gold, and hold the record of most Olympic gold medals in which they won a record seven out of eight from 1928 to 1964.
Since 1968, various other teams have come to the fore, mainly from Southern Hemisphere like Australia, New Zealand. Australia has performed exceedingly well. Argentina was the winner at the last Olympics, but teams like Australia, Belgium, and the Netherlands are expected to finish on the podium this time around. Not to forget India, who will be the dark horses at this Olympics with their recent past performances on the global stage.
Guide
The men's hockey tournament at Tokyo Olympics will have twelve teams, and they are further divided into two groups of six nations, playing every team in their group once. Three points will be awarded for a victory, one for a draw. The top four teams in the group qualify for the quarterfinals. Let's look at the teams in each group
Group A
1. Argentina
2. Australia
3. India
4. Japan
5. New Zealand
6. Spain
Group B
1. Belgium
2. Canada
3. Germany
4. Great Britain
5. Netherlands
6. South Africa
Schedule
The men's hockey tournament at Tokyo Olympics is scheduled from 24 July to 6 August 2021 at Oi Seaside Park in Tokyo, Japan. Let's look at the schedule
Day 1, Saturday, 24 July (06:00 – 09:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A - Japan vs Australia
- Group B – Netherlands vs Belgium
Day 1, Saturday, 24 July (06:30 – 10:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – New Zealand vs India
- Group B – Argentina vs Spain
Day 1, Saturday, 24 July (15:00 – 18:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group B – Great Britain vs South Africa
Day 1, Saturday, 24 July (15:30 – 19:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – Canada vs Germany
Day 2, Sunday, 25 July (15:00 – 18:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – India vs Australia
- Group A – Spain vs New Zealand
Day 2, Sunday, 25 July (15:30 – 19:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – Japan vs Argentina
- Group B – South Africa vs Netherlands
Day 3, Monday, 26 July (06:00 – 09:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group B – Germany vs Belgium
- Group B – Great Britain vs Canada
Day 4, Sunday, 27 July (06:00 – 09:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – Argentina vs Australia
- Group A – Japan vs New Zealand
Day 4, Tuesday, 27 July (06:30 – 10:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – India vs Spain
- Group B – Germany vs Great Britain
Day 4, Tuesday, 27 July (15:00 – 18:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group B – Belgium vs South Africa
- Group B – Netherlands vs Canada
Day 5, Wednesday, 28 July (15:00 – 18:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – Japan vs Spain
Day 5, Wednesday, 28 July (15:30 – 19:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – Australia vs New Zealand
Day 6, Thursday, 29 July (06:00 – 09:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – India vs Argentina
- Group B – South Africa vs Germany
Day 6, Thursday, 29 July (06:30 – 10:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group B – Belgium vs Canada
- Group B – Netherlands vs Great Britain
Day 7, Friday, 30 July (06:30 – 10:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – Australia vs Spain
- Group B – Canada vs South Africa
Day 7, Friday, 30 July (15:00 – 18:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – Japan vs India
- Group B – Germany vs Netherlands
Day 7, Friday, 30 July (15:30 – 19:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Group A – Argentina vs New Zealand
- Group B – Belgium vs Great Britain
Day 8, Sunday, 1 August (06:00 – 10:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Men's Quarterfinals (2 matches)
Day 8, Sunday, 1 August (15:00 – 19:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Men's Quarterfinals (2 matches)
Day 9, Tuesday, 3 August (07:00 – 08:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Men's Semi-final
Day 9, Tuesday, 3 August (15:30 – 17:15) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Men's Semi-final
Day 10, Thursday, 5 August (07:00 – 08:45) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Men's Bronze Medal Match
Day 10, Thursday, 5 August (15:30 – 17:40) IST (Indian Standard Time)
- Men's Gold Medal Match
- Men's Victory ceremony
Indian players
Indian Men Hockey Team (Source: The Quint)
Hockey India announced a 16-member team for the Tokyo Olympics. Let's look at the team
1. Manpreet Singh (Captain)
2. P.R. Sreejesh (Goalkeeper)
3. Harmanpreet Singh (Defender)
4. Rupinder Pal Singh (Defender)
5. Surender Kumar (Defender)
6. Amit Rohidas (Defender)
7. Birendra Lakra (Defender)
8. Hardik Singh (Midfielder)
9. Vivek Sagar Prasad (Midfielder)
10. Nilakanta Sharma (Midfielder)
11. Sumit (Midfielder)
12. Shamsher Singh (Forward)
13. Dilpreet Singh (Forward)
14. Gurjant Singh (Forward)
15. Lalit Kumar Upadhyay (Forward)
16. Mandeep Singh (Forward).
