28 Jul, 2024 True to its resolute policy for gender equality, inclusion and diversity, the International Hockey Federation (FIH) is delighted to announce that, for the first time in its Olympic history, mixed gender on-field umpiring teams will be officiating in some matches at the Paris 2024 Olympic hockey tournaments. Whilst mixed gender umpiring has become a regular occurrence at FIH events in recent years, this had not been the case at previous Olympic Games. This welcomed move is very timely as Paris 2024 will be the very first gender equal Olympic Games across all sports. FIH President Tayyab Ikram said: “Gender equality is anchored into hockey’s DNA, and FIH won’t miss any opportunity to promote it. With the introduction of mixed gender on field umpiring at the Olympics, FIH is showcasing once more its determination towards a more gender equal sport, and society. I would like to congratulate and thank again all umpires that have been selected for these Olympic Games. They have all our support, and I wish them a wonderful Olympic experience!”. The umpiring team in Paris has a 50/50 gender split, part of a similarly equal split across the hockey International Technical Official team participating at the Games. The full list of Officials for the Paris 2024 Olympics hockey tournaments is available here. The hockey competitions at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 take place from Saturday 27 July to Friday 9 August. Both the men’s and women’s competitions feature 12 teams, split into two pools of six ahead of quarter-finals, semi-finals and medal matches. For more information about the hockey competitions at Paris 2024, visit Olympics.Hockey. Source: FIH.hockey

South Africa embarked on their Paris Olympic journey with an exhilarating opening encounter against the world number 1, the Netherlands, at the magnificent Yves du Manoir Stadium. Despite a brief delay due to a spider cam malfunction, the game commenced with high energy and intensity. The match started off with an early opportunity for the Dutch to open the scoring from a penalty stroke, which Jip Janssen converted effortlessly. Unfazed, the South African team quickly regained composure and leveled the score through a brilliantly executed finish from Mustapha Cassiem. The Netherlands, however, regained their lead with a scrappy goal during a period when South Africa was a player short, ending the first quarter at 2-1. Early in the second quarter, the Netherlands extended their lead with a swift counterattack finished by Tjep Hoedemakers. South Africa’s Mustapha Cassiem set up Tevin Kok for a potential comeback, but Dutch goalkeeper Pirmin Blaak made a spectacular save. South Africa, undeterred, earned a penalty corner, which was well-defended by the Dutch. Despite Gowan Jones making a crucial save from a Dutch penalty corner, Jip Janssen scored again just before halftime, putting the score at 4-1. The second half began with Duco Telgenkamp scoring for the Netherlands, making it 5-1. South Africa responded with a moment of sublime quality when Ryan Julius delivered a brilliant through ball to Tevin Kok, who finished with a dream-like goal. South Africa continued to push, earning another penalty corner, which led to a penalty stroke. Matt Guise-Brown stepped up and confidently reduced the deficit to 5-3, setting the stage for an exciting final quarter. In the final quarter, an early penalty corner was well-saved by Blaak, keeping the Dutch lead intact. South Africa continued to create opportunities, much to the delight of the enthusiastic crowd. Calvin Davis showcased his defensive prowess with several key tackles. Despite their best efforts, including another excellent stop by Blaak to deny Guise-Brown from a penalty corner, the match concluded with the Netherlands holding a 5-3 lead. Mustapha Cassiem, the scorer of South Africa’s opening goal, shared his thoughts after the game: “It was a tough game against the world number one, but we don’t have too much time to linger on things as we have a short turnaround to play Great Britain on Sunday. We will always offer a threat from the attacking side of things, but we need to minimize the errors more.” South Africa’s next challenge is against Great Britain at 20:15 on Sunday. The team remains optimistic and determined to build on their strong performance against the top-ranked Dutch. Source: sahockey.co.za | July 27, 2024

26 Jul, 2024 The opening day of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 promises to be an absolutely thrilling affair, with all 12 men’s teams in action and two high-profile fixtures in the women’s competition set to be played in front of packed crowds at the magnificent Yves-du-Manoir Hockey Stadium. The first six matches of the Paris 2024 Olympic hockey competition all take place in the men’s tournament, the action the beginning at 10:00 (CEST) with a mouthwatering clash between Pool A rivals Great Britain and Spain on Pitch 1. While Great Britain enter the competition in confident mood and will be determined to get their quest for Olympic gold off to a flying start, Spain’s Red Sticks know that they also have a squad capable of going deep into this tournament. At 10:30 on Pitch 2, reigning Olympic champions Belgium begin their title defence against Ireland, a team that remarkably claimed two victories over the Red Lions in this season’s FIH Hockey Pro League, in Pool B. The 12:45 match on Pitch 1 sees a Pool A battle between the reigning European and African continental champions as two-time Olympic champions the Netherlands meet South Africa. One of the most eye-catching fixtures of the opening day takes place on pitch 2 at 13:15, as Tokyo 2020 silver medallists and FIH Hockey Pro League winners Australia take on Pool B challengers Argentina, the Olympic gold medallists from Rio 2016. The evening session begins at 1700 with a potentially epic Pool A encounter as home favourites France face a monumental clash against Germany, the reigning world champions and four times Olympic gold medallists, on Pitch 1. While Germany will be seen by many as favourites, the thousands of French fans packed into Yves-du-Manoir will create an electric atmosphere in support of the hosts. The final men’s match of the day takes place on Pitch 2 at 17:30, with eight times Olympic gold medallists and Tokyo bronze medal winners India going head-to-head with 1976 Olympic champions New Zealand. A superb opening day of action is topped off by the first matches of the women’s competition. A Pool B Pan-American derby match between Tokyo 2020 Olympic silver medallists Argentina and USA takes place on Pitch 1 at 1945, while reigning Olympic, World, European and FIH Hockey Pro League champions the Netherlands face hosts France, a Pool A match taking place on Pitch 2 at 20:15. Some fascinating Olympic goalscoring statistics for you. The Netherlands women and India men are the highest scoring teams in Olympic hockey history. The Oranje have netted 166 goals in the ten Games in which they have competed, 20 more than the 146 netted by second placed Australia. India’s 452 sees them top the men’s table ahead of Australia, who have registered 330 goals in Olympic competition. These and more statistics can be found on the FIH Data Hub by clicking here. The hockey competitions at the Olympic Games Paris 2024 take place from Saturday 27 July to Friday 9 August. Both the men’s and women’s competitions feature 12 teams, split into two pools of six ahead of quarter-finals, semi-finals and medal matches. For more information about the hockey competitions at Paris 2024, visit Olympics.Hockey. #Hockey #Paris2024 Source: FIH.hockey

25 Jul, 2024 As a further major measure to promote gender equality, diversity and inclusion, the International Hockey Federation (FIH) has added portrayal guidelines – inspired by the IOC portrayal guidelines and shared them with the global hockey community. These guidelines shall act as a reference and guide for action for all hockey stakeholders in their coverage of the sport. They are essential because sports coverage plays an important role in shaping gender norms and stereotypes, and promoting new positive, diverse role models. Commenting on the guidelines, FIH President Tayyab Ikram said: “First, I would like to express our gratitude to the IOC for having paved the way in this really essential matter. Then, my thanks also go to all those involved in making these guidelines a reality for hockey as well – in particular, the FIH Gender Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee and its Chair, Marijke Fleuren. These guidelines confirm how much inclusivity is a crucial principle for hockey. No matter the gender, the age, the physical or intellectual ability, the religion, the sexual orientation, the ethnic or social background, everyone is welcome in our sport!”. Portrayal is defined as the language (words and expressions), images and voices used, the quality and quantity of coverage and the prominence given, when depicting individuals or groups in all communications channels and platforms. The FIH portrayal guidelines are based on the following main principles: Favouring gender equal, diverse and inclusive representation of the hockey community; Avoiding bias or negative stereotypes on gender and diversity; Generating new strong, positive, and diverse role models. They provide clear advice when it comes to language, images and voices in particular. They also include a fair, inclusive and non-discriminatory portrayal of transgender sportspeople and athletes with sex variations, with FIH advocating for gender equality at all levels of hockey participation across the globe, including opportunities for transgender athletes to compete in the sport. Whilst hockey is equal in many aspects globally – equal participation of men and women players around the world, mixed-gender umpiring, identical competitions formats and schedules, identical prize money, broadcasting rights agreements stipulating equal coverage – the FIH portrayal guidelines enable hockey to go one step further and be even more inclusive than ever before. #Hockey Source: FIH.hockey

25 Jul, 2024 The 12 best teams (men’s and women’s) from around the world are converging in Paris as we countdown to the final few days till the start of the Hockey competition at the Olympic Games Paris 2024! Each team comes with the aim of standing on the Olympic podium, while only one can claim the gold medal at the end of the Games. The first obstacle for all teams in the event come in the form of their pool opponents. The 12 teams have been split into two pools of 6 teams each, with the top four teams from each pool qualifying for the quarterfinals. In today’s preview, meet the teams in Pool B of the men’s competition, and find out the unique playing styles they will bring to Paris. Belgium With masses of experience, quality and self-belief, reigning Olympic champions Belgium will be considered amongst the favourites for the men’s gold medal at Paris 2024. Belgium’s rise from European also-rans to the summit of global hockey has been one of the standout hockey stories of the past two decades. Between 2018 and 2022, the Red Lions won every major title on offer, including the World Cup (2018), Olympic Games (2021), European Championship (2019) and FIH Hockey Pro League (2020-21). They came within a shoot-out of successfully defending their World title at the FIH Odisha Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023, with Germany winning the one-on-ones 5-4 after a thrilling final finished 3-3. Striker Tom Boon excelled at that event, netting eight times including in the quarter final, semi-final and a 59th minute equaliser in the gold medal game to force the shoot-out. A small measure of revenge was achieved in August 2023 when Belgium defeated Germany to seal bronze at the EuroHockey Championships 2023, with Nelson Onana and Florent van Aubel helping the team to a 2-0 win over the hosts nation in Mönchengladbach. In Vincent Vanasch and Loic Van Doren they have two world class goalkeepers, while Arthur Van Doren, Victor Wegnez, Felix Denayer, Van Aubel, Arthur de Sloover, penalty corner goal machine Alexander Hendrickx and legendary midfielder John-John Dohmen – a man with a world record 475 international caps having surpassed Netherlands icon Teun de Nooijer’s mark of 453 in 2023 – are all extraordinary talents. The team is coached by Dutchman Michel van den Heuvel, who stepped up from assistant coach in 2021 following New Zealander Shane McLeod’s decision to step away after guiding the team to the Olympic gold at the delayed Tokyo 2020 Games. McLeod will be part of van den Heuvel’s team at Paris 2024, being one of three assistant coaches. The team secured their place at Paris 2024 with first place finish at the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier event in Valencia (ESP), winning all five of their matches. Tom Boon was instrumental in that success, finishing as competition top scorer (7) and being named player of the tournament. Head Coach Michel van de Heuvel: “We are looking forward to defending our title as Olympic Champions in Paris. It’s an incredibly close competition this time around and whilst we have the experience and quality to be successful, I believe these Olympics will be one of the most competitive tournaments we have ever seen.” India After years of sliding down the FIH World Rankings which culminated in failure to qualify for the Olympic Games Beijing 2008 – a competition that they had won a record eight times – India’s men are back at the top table of the global game. A bronze medal at the delayed Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 was a landmark moment for the team, following it with a third-place finish in the 2021-22 edition of the FIH Hockey Pro League. While a ninth-place finish on home soil at the Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 was certainly far below expectations, India bounced back by taking fourth place in the 2022-23 FIH Hockey Pro League season before storming to glory at last year’s Asian Games competition in Hangzhou (CHN), guaranteeing their participation in the Olympic Games Paris 2024. India were 5-1 winners in the competition final against Japan, with team captain Harmanpreet Singh scoring twice. Harmanpreet is very much India’s star man, being a fabulous defender and one of the best drag flickers in the game. However, he is far from being their only exceptional talent, with two-time FIH Hockey Stars Goalkeeper of the Year PR Sreejesh, classy midfielder Manpreet Singh, striker Mandeep Singh and dazzling midfielder Hardik Singh, the current FIH Hockey Stars men’s Player of the Year all capable of producing magical moments. The team is coached by former South Africa international and triple Olympian Craig Fulton, who has held coaching roles with the national teams of Ireland, Belgium and his home nation. Team Captain Harmanpreet Singh: “After 44 long years, the Indian Hockey Team is travelling to the Olympic Games as a reigning medallist, and I am happy to lead this unit. I know there are a lot of expectations of us from back home, and we are ready to deliver on our promises. Our team has shown tremendous growth and resilience in recent years. As we gear up for Paris 2024, we’re focused on doing our best to change the color of the medal, and represent India with pride. We’re hungry for success and determined to bring glory to our nation on the Olympic stage.” Australia After suffering a heartbreaking shoot-out defeat at the hands of Belgium in the Tokyo 2020 gold medal match three years ago, Australia will be determined to stand atop of the podium at Paris 2024. Judging by their excellent recent form in the FIH Hockey Pro League, they have every chance of adding a second Olympic gold medal to that won so famously by Jamie Dwyer and co. at Athens 2004 some 20 years ago. In June the mighty Kookaburras, coached by legendary Australia striker Colin Batch, claimed their first Pro League title since 2019 by winning ten of their 16

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