Paris, Aug 10 (IANS): The Indian men's hockey team made history on Thursday as the Harmanpreet Singh-led side secured a back-to-back bronze medal for their 2-1 comeback win at Yves-du-Manoir Stadium on Thursday. Following the team’s return to the country, RP Singh, former hockey player and chairman of Hockey India's (HI) selection committee spoke to IANS and shared his thoughts on the campaign.
“This is a very happy occasion that our players have won two consecutive medals. Even if the country misses out on a medal or two, the country celebrates differently when it comes to Hockey. The expectation around the team is if the hockey team goes somewhere then they will win a medal,” Singh told IANS.
Despite the stellar performance in the entire tournament which saw India defeat the likes of Australia and Great Britain, the team missed out on a gold medal after losing 2-3 against Germany in the semifinals.
“Our expectation was that of a gold medal because of the way we won the group games and the quarterfinal. So, we did feel we could go on to win the whole thing. We missed our chances in the semi-finals and paid the price by losing 2-3 so we were disappointed,” he added.
The Indian men’s hockey team has a rich history in the Olympics as the most successful nation in the Games having won 13 medals. From Amsterdam 1928 to Melbourne 1956, India won six gold medals in a row. A silver at Rome 1960 (silver), Tokyo 1964 (gold), Mexico City 1968 (bronze), Munich 1972 (bronze), Moscow 1980 (gold), Tokyo 2020 (bronze), and Paris 2024 (bronze) are the other medals the Indians have won in the Olympics. The back-to-back bronze medals have proved that the team is on course to revive the golden days of Indian hockey.
Not only was the nation’s record-extending 13th medal a historic one, but it also holds a lot of significance as the 2024 Paris Olympics Games were the last tournament for India’s star goalkeeper PR Sreejesh as the 36-year-old called curtains on what has been an illustrious career that spanned for nearly two decades.
The chairman of the HI selection committee further went on to elaborate on how they plan to replace the custodian on the side.
‘We have 3-4 goalkeepers in the pipeline who we need to train to come forward. When a player leaves only then will the space for a new player to come in be created. We have been in active conversation to see who can replace Sreejesh,” concluded Singh.