India, the reigning Asian Games champions and Tokyo Olympics bronze medallists, face a formidable challenge in Pool B of the men’s hockey competition at the upcoming Paris Games. The eight-time champions are grouped with the reigning Olympic champions and world number 2, Belgium, powerhouse Australia, Rio Games gold medallist Argentina, New Zealand, and Ireland.
Despite being ranked third in the world, India has historically found it challenging to overcome Tokyo silver medallist Australia and Argentina. Pool A features the Netherlands, Germany, Great Britain, Spain, France, and South Africa.
The International Hockey Federation announced the pool compositions for both the men’s and women’s hockey competitions following the conclusion of the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers. In the women’s competition, India, who finished fourth in Tokyo, will not be represented as they failed to qualify, losing to Japan 0-1 in the Olympic Qualifiers in Ranchi.
The women’s competition in Paris sees reigning Olympic champions Netherlands in Pool A with Belgium, Germany, Japan, China, and hosts France. Pool B includes Australia, current silver medallist Argentina, Great Britain, Spain, USA, and South Africa.
Teams were allocated to their respective pools based on the FIH World Rankings as of Sunday. The 12 teams per gender qualified for the Olympic Games either as hosts, winners of their continental qualifiers, or top three finishers in their FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers.
The top four teams from each pool in both men’s and women’s competitions will advance to the quarterfinals. The Paris Olympics will take place from July 26 to August 11, with hockey competitions scheduled from July 27 to August 9.
