‘The way I was made women’s coach was disrespectful’

Sjoerd Marijne has played his part in scripting Olympic history but the outgoing women’s hockey team chief coach still has scars of what he feels was a “disrespectful” transition back in 2018, when he was shunted out from men’s side after the Commonwealth Games disappointment.

The former Dutch player came to the country to take over the Indian women’s team in 2017 but was appointed the chief coach of the men’s side later that year.

However, in 2018, he was redesignated as the women’s coach in a rejigging of roles with Junior World Cup-winning coach Harendra Singh taking charge of the men’s side.

But that bitter episode is still fresh in Marijne’s mind as he left the country after a successful four-year stint. “Of course, I was not really happy with the transition. I was not really happy with what happened, the way it happened with the men’s team and I don’t think that was fairly respectful,” Marijne said after reaching India from a medal-less but successful Olympics. “But the moment I returned back to women, Savita (goalkeeper) came to my room and said ‘Listen we are really happy you are back’. That moment for me was the changing moment. I felt OK it’s good to be there again.”

Marijne felt if given a longer time, he could have achieved a lot with the men’s side. “But people shouldn’t misunderstand me. It was not that I was disappointed to go back to women’s team, I was not happy the way they handled it with men’s team because I left on a really good moment. On one side you have the opportunity to work with the most challenging team in the world in Indian men and on the other I was doing Indian women and we were just going up. So it was a really difficult decision and I am happy how it ended. I am happy with what I did with the women’s team, so no grudges,” he said.

Under Marijne, the Indian women did the unthinkable in Tokyo Olympics, reaching the semi-finals for the first time by stunning three-time champions Australia 1-0 in the quarter-finals. The Indians narrowly missed out on bronze, losing 3-4 to higher ranked Great Britain in the third place playoff. “I am proud of what we have achi as a team, the legacy we h created. I am extremely ha for the girls because they can feel what it is to have cess,” Marijne said. “I am pr of how close we were matches against Great Bri and Argentina. It was n walkover. The fighting in last match, coming bac shows the new Indian wom team. They never gave up a is something that has chan over the years.”