Indian men’s hockey team receives thunderous welcome on return from Paris 2024 Olympics
The Indian men’s hockey team returned from the Paris 2024 Olympics campaign filled with new records and a bronze medal on Saturday. The 16-member squad, which boasted 11 members from the bronze-winning team in the Tokyo Olympics, created history by winning back-to-back medals for the first time since the 1972 Olympics in Munich.
Captain Harmanpreet Singh said, “It is very heart-warming to see Indian fans come out to receive and congratulate us for the bronze medal. The team left no stone unturned to prepare for the Olympics and to see your efforts bear fruit, to see the whole country rejoice in our victory, is an inexplicable feeling.”
The Paris Games saw the Indian men’s hockey defeat Australia by 3-2, for the first time after 52 years in the Olympics. The team pulled out another rabbit from the hat in the quarterfinals, where it defended with a man down for over 40 minutes to force penalty shootouts and win by 4-2, courtesy of heroics from PR Sreejesh.
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Vice Captain Hardik Singh highlighted the camaraderie in the squad saying, ”The trust we had in each other, the unshakeable belief that a teammate will step right up to cover up if you miss a step, is what pushed us to always give our best on the field.”
Legendary goalkeeper, Sreejesh announced that he would retire before heading to Paris. Vowing to ‘Win it for Sreejesh’, the team made it all the way to the bronze medal match against Spain. Harmanpreet, the top scorer of the Paris 2024 Olympics with 10 goals, netted a brace to seal the victory in this do-or-die match.
“The Paris 2024 Olympics turned out to be an unforgettable experience, we will cherish these memories for some time to come. With this bronze medal, the team has proved that Indian Hockey is back on track. We are a force to be reckoned with and on our day, we can really be unstoppable,” Harmanpreet concluded.