From Prime Minister Narendra Modi to eminent sports personalities, the country was wholesome in its praise for the Indian hockey team after it clinched the Asian Champion Trophy by beating arch-rivals Pakistan in the finals at Kuantan, Malaysia on Sunday. Favourites India prevailed 3-2 over Pakistan to reclaim the trophy and present a perfect Diwali gift to the nation. PM Modi wrote on his twitter handle, "Very proud of our hockey team. Congratulations on winning the Asian Champions Trophy."
'The level we played in Champions Trophy will not be enough for the Olympics if we are vying for a medal'
Why India can't deny Pakistan entry to multi-lateral events on its soil
Navneet Kaur struck from a penalty corner seconds before the final hooter as India came from behind twice to hold defending champions Japan to a 2-2 draw
Determined to put up a top-notch performance at the 2016 Olympic Games, the Indian men and women's hockey teams arrived in Rio de Janeiro on Friday.
India endured a medal-less outing at the Youth Olympics after the gold rush of the previous three days as the women's hockey team lost to Argentina and rising table tennis player Archana Kamath went down in the bronze medal match in Buenos Aires.
Chief coach Roelant Oltmans says the performance of the team is always getting better and it is important that the level remains consistent.
Former India hockey Olympian Joseph Antic's condition has improved since being hospitalised in Mumbai on Friday morning.
Midfield stalwart Manpreet Singh is the biggest name missing from the list of 33 probables announced by Hockey India for the senior men's national coaching camp ahead of the upcoming FIH Pro League season, set to begin in Rourkela next month.
India hockey coach Michael Nobbs defended the decision to drop a few senior players from the squad for next month's Olympic qualifier, insisting that form and fitness were the only criteria for selection.
Maharaj Kishan Kaushik is back as coach of India's men's hockey team, ten years after the guiding it to the gold medal at the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games. His selection was finalised at a meeting of the ad hoc committee, set up by the Indian Olympic Association in Delhi, on Tuesday and formally announced on Wednesday. He will be in charge of the team till the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games in China.
With the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games being postponed by a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Sardar feels the Indian team will get some time to work on its grey areas and unearth new talent.
India thrashed Malaysia 4-1 in their second Super 4 stage match of the men's Asia Cup hockey tournament in Rajgir, Bihar, on Thursday.
The 2020 Olympics will be be held from July 24 to August 9 next year with the preliminary rounds of hockey for both men and women scheduled to start on July 25.
The PHF is considering inviting the team for a nine-nation tournament in December.
India will next play Pakistan on Tuesday.
India men's hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh has two Olympic bronze medals in his cabinet, but rues missing out on World Cup glory.
Australia has by far been the most dominant team in CWG, winning all six golds till date.
Talismanic midfielder Sardar Singh will lead an experimental 18-member India hockey team, which will be without as many as seven players including senior goalkeeper and vice-captain P R Sreejesh, in the 25th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup to be held in Ipoh, Malaysia next month.
Hockey India president Dilip Kumar Tirkey said Pakistan have pulled out of the upcoming Hockey Asia Cup 2025 due to security reasons.
With India set to face Pakistan in the Asia Cup 2025, former Indian football captain Bhaichung Bhutia weighed in, stating that the decision on whether the two nations should compete against each other in sporting events must rest with the Government of India.
India's struggles in the Rourkela leg of the FIH Pro League continued with a 2-4 defeat against Belgium, marking their third consecutive loss at the Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium. Belgium dominated early, but India showed resilience in the second half.
Bangladesh is likely to replace Pakistan in the men's Asia Cup hockey tournament to be held in Rajgir, Bihar from August 29 if the latter fails to confirm participation in the next couple of days.
The two-time Olympian (2012 and 2016), from Somwarpet in Coorg, was a key player in the Indian forward line for over a decade with fine performances.
India captain Harmanpreet Singh and senior goalkeeper Savita Punia won the Hockey India Balbir Singh Senior Player of the Year award.
Monetary rewards continue to trickle in for the Indian men's hockey team. Sahara India Pariwar announced a cash incentive of Rs 1.27 crore for the players and support staff of the side that emerged winners in the just-concluded London Olympics qualifier.
Chief coach Craig Fulton was not fully satisfied with Indian men's hockey team's performance against lowly China in their Asia Cup opener, but stressed that the most important thing was to start with a win.
Indian men's hockey team chief coach Paul van Ass on Monday claimed that he has been fired by Hockey India following his alleged public altercation with federation president Narinder Batra.
The FIH Hockey Pro League matches between India and Great Britain, scheduled for May 8-9 in London, were on Wednesday postponed following the UK government's decision to add India to the travel 'red list'.
The Bihar government has decided to award Rs 10 lakh to each and every playing member of the Indian women's hockey team that won the Asian Champions Trophy here on Wednesday, beating reigning Olympic medallist China 1-0 in the final.
A look at the careers of Indian sportspersons who have transitioned into politics, highlighting their successes, failures, and party affiliations.
'Many of the players I played alongside like Harmanpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh, Krishan Pathak are doing very well today. Somewhere, there is regret that I could not do that.'
Consolation bronze in Asiad can't heal our pain, says hockey captain Sreejesh
Sreejesh accepted that there are a few grey areas which came to light during the recent runners-up finish at the Sultan of Johor Cup in Malaysia.
The 23-year-old Salima has been an integral part of the team for a while after being appointed captain last year.
Former India hockey captain Viren Rasquinha suffered a rude shock during the Times Lit Fest in Mumbai on Sunday when socialite Suhel Seth questioned Rasquinha's presence on the sports panel of the lit festival.
The men's team last participated in an international competition in February last year when they played the FIH Hockey Pro League matches against Australia in Bhubaneswar.
Roelant Oltmans fully understands what a men's hockey medal would mean to India's success-starved fans but the Dutch coach will not burden his players with the pressure of bringing one home from the Rio Games.
Memories of the bottom-place finish at the 1986 World Cup here returned to haunt the Indian hockey team, who will now have to lift their game to avert the wooden spoon at the London Olympics.
The Indian hockey team will get Rs 25 lakh from Bharat Hotels Limited for doing a stupendous job in the ongoing Champions Challenge I tournament in South Africa, where they have reached the final.
