NEW DELHI: Chief coach of the Indian women's hockey team Harendra Singh told his team to "forget the past and think about the future" as he outlined his team's plan for the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles . The Indian women's team set a new record in Tokyo, finishing a creditable fourth, but were unable to qualify for the Paris Games, where the men's team earned a bronze medal for the second time running. "When I took up this team, we had discussed this topic in length.
I always look into the positive side and feel that something better is there in store for them. "Obviously girls were disheartened, the whole country was sad but I told them that there is something bigger waiting for them," Harendra, who was appointed to the role in April this year, told PTI Bhasha. "I told them to forget about the past and think about the future.
I have given this mission a name 'Road to LA 2028' and I think it will be a beautiful journey." Having led the women's team from 2017 to 2018, Harendra stated that his goal is to win an Olympic gold medal in Los Angeles in 2028 and counseled his players to "forget the past and think about the future". "India won the first Olympic medal in hockey in Los Angeles in 1928 when the legend Dhyan Chand ji was the part of the team and what would be a better start than winning a medal in 2028 at the same place exactly after 100 years," said Harendra, who was earlier in charge of the women's team in 2017-18.
"Whatever good has been done in the last four years, I would not like to change that. Then we will take it one by one and what went wrong. We started from there and I told them that I am not expecting great results in the Pro League.
We have to make a foundation for LA 2028," said the Dronacharya awardee. In response to a question concerning his motivation for quitting his lucrative position as head coach of the USA men's national team and coming home, Harendra stated, "I am happy to be back home and serving for the vision of women empowerment in India." "Somewhere I wanted to contribute and not a better place to serve Indian hockey, especially women.
"Professionally I have learnt many things in my stint as a coach of the US men's team. I think after Rio Olympics we have realised we are a sleeping giant and must wake up now. The kind of talent we have and the infrastructure now, that inspired me a lot," he said.
"We have a lot of potential in women's hockey and it's not impossible to climb the ladder and win medals. It's about passion and coming back to your roots," added the 55-year-old, who coached India to the men's Junior World Cup title in 2016. According to Harendra, one thing that he is very concerned about is fitness.
"This team is lacking in the fitness standard which is needed for modern-day hockey. It includes speed, endurance, agility and decision making ability. They have technical skills and if they fulfill the fitness parameters that will give them an edge in big tournaments," he said.
"My prime job is to improve the strength, power and speed of this team." Furthermore, he emphasized that the core of his long-term strategy is a self-contained phrase known as "SST," or science, skills, and technology. "We have to incorporate science, skill and technology, which I call SST.
We are now playing European style which was the biggest lacking earlier. We have made a blueprint. There should be one model, one coaching philosophy from the grassroots to national camp," he said.
Additionally, he supported Salima Tete 's selection as the new captain since it gives star goalie Savita more freedom to play. "Savita is wall of Indian women's hockey. She has served our country for many years now and is an integral part of our scheme of things but there is one technical glitch.
"If the captain is shown the green card during the match what will happen because she is the goalkeeper? So it's better to have a captain who is not a goalkeeper," Harendra said. "For me all players are captains. In hockey a captain does not have to make many big decisions on the field like cricket.
And also there is a new beginning with the new captain. And the good part is that Savita has started contributing more than earlier.".
