Press Trust of India
New Delhi, August 25: His wards might have failed to break the medal jinx at the just-concluded Rio Olympics, but Indian men’s hockey team’s chief coach Roelant Oltmans asserted that their results in the quadrennial extravaganza were satisfactory if not ideal.
India finished fourth in group stage having won two, drawn one and lost two. One of India’s win came against eventual gold medallists, Argentina. However, in the quarterfinals India lost 1-3 to to silver medallists Belgium.
“The results were satisfactory if not ideal according to our preparations. But looking back we can see that in every game we pushed our opponents till the very end,” Oltmans said after returning here Thursday.
“This is a team of high quality. Sometimes the results don’t accurately portray the performance. In this case, I think the team have learnt a lot. The players deserve a short break, and then, very soon, it will be back to the grind,” he added.
With some strong performances in the lead up to the Rio Games that included a silver medal finish at the FIH Champions Trophy in London, the expectations from the Indians were very high in the Olympics. But after a strong start, the PR Sreejesh-led side faded out.
Sreejesh stated that the Rio Games have been an eye opener for each and every member of his side. “It is a life-time experience and an eye opener for us. As professionals we always dream of representing our country at the highest level and the Olympics is the highest. I’m proud of the team for the way we played,” he asserted.
“Barring some small moments, our performance was very good. Now we have to focus on correcting all the things we got wrong and believe in ourselves for the future,” he added.
