Proud of the fight more than the result

That they managed to achieve what they did in Tokyo is a testament to the single-minded focus and dedication of the entire Indian women’s hockey squad and the support staff.

Much before the Indian women’s hockey team actually won the Breakthrough Performance of the Year award at the 2022 Sportstar Aces Awards, it was clear it would get it. Way back when the nominations were first announced, in fact.

After all, the group of girls, with an average age of 23-24 years, had managed to do what no other Indian women’s team has been able to do — reach the semifinals at the Olympics, getting over three-time champion Australia in the process.

Lack of experience overwhelmed the Indians in their last two games against Argentina in the semifinals and Britain in the bronze-medal playoff but the group, with two of its senior-most players manning either ends — Rani Rampal at the front and Savita Punia under the bar — had done enough to merit attention even before the Olympics.

That they managed to achieve what they did is a testament to the single-minded focus and dedication of the entire squad and the support staff including former coach Sjoerd Marijne and trainer Wayne Lombard.

With no competitive outing for more than a year since they qualified for the Tokyo Games way back in 2019 and severely restricted to camps and homes for months at stretch even as the rest of the hockey world got into match mode, the girls could have been excused for a less-than-stellar show. But this bunch doesn’t believe in excuses.

“We finished 12th at Rio. It was not a good feeling but it was a learning trip. We realised what the Olympics is all about, why it is different from any other competition in the world. We had a checklist of targets to tick off in Tokyo.

“The first was to make sure we did not finish last. Then reach the quarterfinals. Then the semifinals. After that, of course, it was open for all,” Savita told Sportstar before receiving the award.

Coming so close to a medal hurt the team more than anything else. “No one remembers narrow finishes or close fights on the field. Only winners are remembered, only medalists are celebrated,” a distraught, teary Rani had commented after losing the bronze-medal game. She was proven wrong. They returned as heroes making the nation proud of the fight more than the result.

K. R. DEEPAK Savita Punia, Nikki Pradhan and Sushila Chanu Pukhramba, members of the Indian women’s hockey team, being honoured with the Breakthrough Performance of the Year Award by V. Satish Kumar, Director, Marketing of Indianoil Corporation Ltd., and Sachin Sharma, Head of Marketing, Casio India.