India women players cheer men’s hockey bronze from afar

Bengaluru: When the final hooter went off in the men’s hockey bronze medal match and the team piled on top of ‘keeper PR Sreejesh in a celebratory heap, a wave of joy ran through the women’s hostel at SAI Bengaluru. Accompanied perhaps by a twinge of regret. Orders for cake and takeaway food were frantically placed.
The Indian men’s hockey team had won their second successive medal for the first time in 52 years. “We all sat together and watched the matches, and celebrated every goal,” says Salima Tete, captain of the national women’s hockey team. “Bahut khushi hui… hume laga ki kaash hum bhi jaa paate (We were overjoyed…we wished we could have gone too).”
The women’s team did not qualify for the Paris Olympics. Their 0-1 loss to Japan in the third-place playoff of the FIH Olympic qualifiers in January shut out all hope. They’ve since had a change of coach – Harendra Singh has replaced Janneke Schopman – and are now toiling away in the national camp.
“We came very close but didn’t qualify. It hurts a lot,” says Tete, “We spend months together in camp, away from family, working hard, so it’s tough to come to terms with missing out on an Olympics.” In their match against Japan, they had nine penalty corners, but couldn’t convert any of them. “We are working on our PCs and conversion,” said the 22-year-old. “For us the World Cup and Asian Games is where we want to do well next. Then of course, the Olympics in 2028.”
For Savita Punia, the World Cup and Asian Games are as far as she wants to plan for now. The 34-year-old who got married last year says she doesn’t want to think too far ahead. “For women, once we get married, family becomes a priority. I’m happy my husband and in-laws encourage me to pursue my career. They live in Canada so time zones are different. Long phone calls happen only during the weekend. They know I have morning training sessions, so they insist I sleep on time. They know how much the sport means to me. Had we qualified for Paris, maybe things would have been different for me. Now, I just want us to win the Asian Games. A career in sport is short-lived. For women, it’s even tougher. I want to leave without much regret.”
Savita, Salima and the rest of the team have spent the past fortnight or so following the Olympics. Watching the live action when they could or catching the highlights. “I watched Vinesh’s semi-final bout highlights the next day and then heard she was disqualified…it was just so painful,” says Savita. “I had no idea weight cutting was more tough than the bout itself. It might sound like empty words but I’ve been praying for her every day since. I can’t imagine what she’s going through.
“Our men’s hockey team looked so good this time. We were almost certain they would go to the final. But just what they’ve done…winning two Olympic medals back-to-back is great. It deserves a lot of credit.”
In Tokyo, the women’s team came agonisingly close to a historic, first-ever medal. Their 3-4 loss to Great Britain in the bronze medal playoff saw them finish fourth. At this Olympics, India has had six fourth-place finishes, in shooting, archery, weightlifting and badminton.
“Fourth place is the worst place to be in…This time there were six such finishes, right? It’s just a horrible feeling to come so close to a medal and miss out,” says Savita. “It’s been three years, but even today every day we wake up regretting what happened in Tokyo. In our heads we go over what went wrong, the mistakes we made. That pain hasn’t left us. I don’t think it ever will.”