With just a few days left until the start of the hockey competition at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, 12 of the best teams (men's and women's) from around the world are gathering in Paris, each with a shot at a spot on the Olympic podium, with only one team able to win the gold medal at the end of the Games.
The first hurdle for every team in the tournament is their pool opponents. The 12 teams will be split into two pools of six, with the top four from each pool advancing to the quarterfinals. In today's preview, we'll take a look at the teams in Pool B of the women's tournament and the unique style of play they will bring to the table in Paris.
Australia
Between 1994 and 2000, Australia won two Olympic gold medals and two World Cups, dominating the hockey world as the world's strongest team with a team coached by Rick Charlesworth and inspired by the attacking talents of current head coach Katrina Powell and Allison Annan, who leads Olympic rivals China. With three Olympic titles and a top six finish in every tournament since their debut in Los Angeles in 1984, Australia are a constant threat on the sport's greatest stage.
Having secured an Olympic berth by winning the bronze medal at the 2022 FIH Women's World Cup and the 2023 Oceania Cup, Powell's Australia will believe they can achieve great things at Paris 2024. The team recorded some notable results in the lead up to the Olympics, including FIH Hockey Pro League wins over Argentina and Great Britain, who won silver and bronze medals at the postponed 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Co-captains Brooke Peris, Caitlin Nobbs, Jane Claxton and Grace Stewart have all been standout players for Australia, while Mariah Williams, Maddie Fitzpatrick, rising star Amy Lawton and goalkeeper Jocelyn Bertram are also capable of making match-winning contributions.
Head Coach Katrina Powell“Our team is in great shape right now. The players are united and excited to play. We talked about the history and tradition and how playing in the Olympics will strengthen that and the players are very proud to represent the Hockeyroos. We tested ourselves in Australia in some quality games against Australia A. They are always tough and I have been impressed with the consistency of our performances heading into this Olympics. The mix of this group and the strengths within it is our biggest strength heading into Paris. Each player has different strengths which offset and balance well.”
Argentina
“Las Leonas” (The Lioness) have long been considered one of the most fearsome attacking teams in the world and are undoubtedly a true powerhouse in the sport. The 14-time Pan American Continental Champions have had an impressive run on the world stage, winning two World Cups, seven Champions Trophy titles and one FIH Hockey Pro League. Despite this success, the team remains battling for an Olympic gold medal.
Though the big prize is yet to be won, their Olympic record remains very impressive, with three silver and two bronze medals in eight Olympic Games. They have secured a place in their ninth Olympic Games by winning the gold medal at the Pan American Games to be held in Santiago (Chicago) in 2023, defeating Uruguay, Trinidad and Tobago, Canada and the United States twice in pool and gold medal matches. Drag-flick defender Agustina Gorzelany has scored 11 points in five games, including the opening goal in the final against the United States, which was then sealed by Eugenia Trincinetti's field goal to give the team a 2-1 victory.
Argentina arrives at Paris 2024 in excellent form, having finished third in the 2023-24 FIH Hockey Pro League. The team has recorded seven wins and one draw in their last eight games and coach Fernando Ferrara, who represented Argentina at the Seoul 1988, Barcelona 1992 and Atlanta 1996 Olympic Games, will be ecstatic as his team embarks on a quest for Olympic glory.
Argentina is a genuine favorite to win the tournament with a talented team loaded with players such as dynamic attacker Maria Granat, experienced team captain Rocio Sanchez, up-and-coming defender Valentina Raposo and corner-scoring star Golselani.
Head Coach Fernando Ferrara“We will be calm and confident, bring everything we have trained and done during this process onto the field and try to get results from it. The players get on well and support each other very much. That is the most important positive, more than anything technical, tactical or quality of play, that is what makes the difference. What we are sure of is that we will give 110 percent to return to Argentina in top form.”
England
Having won gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics and bronze at the 2012 London Olympics and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the Great Britain Women's National Team has had impressive success in recent Olympic Games and will be aiming for a fourth consecutive podium at the 2024 Paris Olympics. Their performance leading up to the Olympics had been mixed, with a seventh place finish in the 2023-24 FIH Hockey Pro League falling well short of the lofty expectations they had. Although Great Britain managed just three wins from 16 Pro League matches, coach David Ralph used the tournament to review his 28-man roster before naming his Paris Olympic team.
Thirteen members of the team that won their Olympic ticket by beating Ireland 2-1 in the bronze medal game at the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier in Valencia, Spain in January have been selected for this year's Olympics. They include team captain Holly Pearn-Webb and Laura Roper (née Unsworth), both Olympic gold medallists at Rio 2016 and among the best defenders in the world. Lily Owsley and Hannah French (née Martin), who also won gold medals in Rio, are major threats in attack with their incredible speed and skill. Striker Tess Howard is also a key player who can create game-winning moments in front of goal. With a team packed with talent and experience, Great Britain is more than capable of winning a medal at Paris 2024.
Head Coach David Ralph“The GB Women's team has a long history at the Olympic Games and now we have the opportunity to make our own history. This is a moment and an opportunity for us to create memories that will last a lifetime. We look forward to arriving in Paris and experiencing the Olympic environment before the first group match gets underway on Sunday 28 July.”
Spain
The Spanish women's team made an unforgettable Olympic debut by winning gold on home soil in Barcelona 1992. Their stunning performance shocked the hockey world and they will be aiming to repeat their success in Paris 2024, their eighth Olympic Games.
The Red Sticks have already enjoyed a productive 2024, having qualified for the Paris Olympics on home soil in Valencia earlier this year. Wins over Malaysia, Great Britain and Canada secured a place in the semi-finals, before a penalty shootout victory over Ireland secured a top-three finish and a trip to Paris.
The team competed again in June at the FIH Women's Hockey Nations Cup hosted by Spain in Terrassa, winning the gold medal and securing promotion to next season's FIH Hockey Pro League. Top scorer of the tournament, Laura Riera, scored six goals and led the team to five wins from five games, beating Ireland twice and also winning against South Korea, Italy and Chile.
Riera has been a key player for the Red Sticks and is one of four Paris-bound players to win more than 200 caps, along with Beatriz Pérez, co-captain Maria Lopez (249) and Zanthar Gine.
Team Captain Zanthar Jine: “We are very excited for the challenge that lies ahead. We have been training very well over the last few months and winning the Nations Cup has given us great confidence going into the Olympics.”
America
The United States failed to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Games, but returned to the Olympic stage with a respectable second-place finish at the qualifying tournament in Ranchi, India in January.
The 1984 Olympic bronze medallists started their Ranchi qualifiers with a 1-0 win over hosts India, thanks to an Abigail Tamar goal from open play. It was the first of four straight wins, and they went on to beat Italy and New Zealand before beating Japan 2-1 in the semi-finals to secure a top-three finish and a place in Paris.
The United States' first attempt at qualifying for Paris ended in heartbreak when the team finished with a silver medal at the 2023 Pan American Games in Santiago (CHI). They advanced to the tournament final with wins over Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay and hosts Chile, but their hopes were dashed when they were stripped of the gold medal in a 2-1 victory over Argentina.
The U.S. team in Paris is full of promising young players, with an average age of 24 and an average number of caps of just 57. Team captain Amanda Gorrini (née Magadan), 29, and midfielder Ashley Hoffman, 27, are the only players to have eclipsed the 100-cap milestone.
They will be coached by David Passmore, a man with an impressive pedigree having previously worked for England and Great Britain before being heavily involved in Irish hockey over the past decade.
Team Captain Amanda Gorrini: “The team is excited, we've just finished our rigorous final training session in preparation and are looking forward to the competition. You never know what's going to happen in the Olympics, especially in a hockey tournament. That's why we play sports – the unknowns are what make it exciting. It's important to be aware of that fact, but leading up to the Olympics, our team is focused on the process and preparation.”
South Africa
South Africa has been a powerhouse in African hockey for decades, having won the African Continental Championship seven times and the African Olympic Qualifiers five times.
The team won their sixth Olympic berth in the qualifiers held in their home town of Pretoria at the end of 2023, beating Zimbabwe 10-0, Nigeria (4-0) and Ghana (7-0), and advanced to the finals where they faced Nigeria for the second time. This time, South Africa won 9-0, overwhelming their opponents and earning their Olympic berth.
South Africa's team for Paris 2024 features six players who competed at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics – Quanita Bobbs, Celia Seelane, Edith Moricoe, Kristen Paton, Onsatile Zulu and Erin Christie. They will also feature the oldest and youngest players in women's hockey, with 37-year-old London 2012 Olympian Darkie Chamberlain and the aptly named 17-year-old Paris Gayle Isaacs.
The team's coach is Giles Bonnet, who played for South Africa at the 1994 Men's World Cup and has also served as head coach for the Belgium men's and Canadian women's national teams.
Team Captain Quanita Bobbs“I'm very optimistic about the Olympics. We have prepared hard to compete against the best in the world. I'm looking forward to the challenge ahead and can't wait to show the world what the South African women's hockey team is made of.”
