India vs Spain, Paris Olympics 2024 Bronze medal match (PC: RevSportz)

S.Kannan in Paris

The joyous scenes when the Indian hockey team won a big medal were to be seen in Paris — on the hockey turf, the dressing room as well as the streets near the Yves De Manoir Stadium. Given the mass connect, which the sport has with fans and players, India winning a second Olympics bronze medal in succession is important for the sport, sponsors, and the next generation to take over.

When Hockey India sacked coach Graham Reid and Craig Fulton took over just a short period before the Asian Champions Trophy and the Asian Games in Hangzhou, it was worrying. That Fulton is now hailed as the architect of India’s win is not misplaced. He deserves all praise and cash awards. If anything, just as Harmanpreet Singh is going to be the skipper till the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, Fulton should also be given a long reign. For the record, Reid had also posted a message for India on social media yesterday.

Having interacted with Fulton just after he took over in 2023 and also just after the team had won gold in the Asian Games in China, what struck one about the coach was how he had struck a rapport with the players. It is the best sign for Indian hockey and one never heard dressing room stories of any discord. Everyone knows, given the hiring and firing record of Hockey India vis a vis foreign coaches, Fulton deserves to be celebrated. More importantly, PR Sreejesh being named as coach of the junior side is the best news. After all, he and Fulton can share inputs for the betterment of Indian hockey. This is how it played out when Roland Oltmans was HPD – high performance director – and then had to also take over as coach when the results were not good.

Oltmans and  Harendra Singh, who was coach of the junior side at that time, over seven years ago, struck a rapport and India won a Junior World Cup in Lucknow. If one looks at Indian hockey today, there is enormous scope for developing it further. Every Indian fan will miss Sreejesh, the goalkeeper, and there is a worry who will replace him. Well, Sreejesh signed off on a high and it will take time to groom the next set of goalkeepers for India.

Back to Fulton, he has talked only when needed. After the Asian Games win, when he saw the plight of the Indian women’s team, he was worried. Now, the situation has changed. On Thursday evening, on a video call from New Delhi, women’s coach Harendra Singh was shedding tears. Why? Sheer emotions and he knows the women’s team also has to be built layer by layer.

In terms of development of hockey, people will now understand why the sponsors and the Government have to spend money in crores of rupees. Junior tournaments, camps, exposure tours and much more, all this is needed. There has been sarcasm, why so much money should be spent on one medal. That one medal has a mass connect in India with the masses. For a side to now play “total hockey” be super fit and play “full press” hockey, all this has not happened overnight.

The way the hockey bronze medal will be celebrated when the team returns to India, it will be euphoric. After the celebrations, more camps will take place and the next preparation will be for the Asian Games in 2026, the FIH Pro League and so on. More tournaments also means tapping into more talent. That is the only way India can unearth more champion players.

As Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey told this writer after the bronze medal win: “This is a very important medal for us.” What he meant was how the sport needs more support from all quarters. He has seen it all, as a player, someone who has worked in Odisha closely and administers the federation. Support Indian hockey and celebrate August 29, the birth anniversary of legend Dhyan Chand as well.