Sports Bulletin

Sports Bulletin Report Birmingham (UK):-New Zealand’s men got the day’s play underway with a comfortable showing against Pakistan, while Australia got their games title defence started with a massive victory over Scotland. The afternoon session started with a cracker between England and Wales men in which the hosts claimed a valuable three points, while India put 11 past Ghana. The evening began with a narrow England women’s win over Canada, with the day ended by a dominant Australia showing against South Africa.       New Zealand 4 Pakistan 1 (Pool A men) New Zealand’s men opened the day’s play with a consummate performance against Pakistan, claiming their first 3 points after a remarkable opening day draw with Scotland. The first quarter saw a barrage of Black Sticks pressure, with misses from Sam Lane and Brad Read alongside a Nic Woods blocked effort and a Hugo Inglis shot saved by Pakistan keeper Akmal Hussain. Despite the one-way traffic Pakistan stood firm and the first quarter ended goalless. However, the pressure on the Pakistan goal did eventually reap reward for New Zealand, as dangerous midfielder Inglis fired home just a minute into the second period. Inglis doubled his tally -  and his sides lead - just a minute later as New Zealand looked to turn the screw. However, the quick-fire double appeared to wake up Pakistan, who dragged themselves back into the tie following a Ghazanfar Ali strike in the 26th minute. Both sides had chances to score again in the quarter, but the game remained at 2-1 heading into half-time. Gold Coast silver medallists New Zealand came back out after the break looking to put the game to bed as they searched for maximum points. However, chances from the likes of Inglis, Jake Smith and Kane Russell came and went to no avail. Pakistan began to create chances for themselves through Ahmad Nadeem, Rizwan Ali and Afraz as the game became more open, with both sides feeling like they could take something from the clash. Then came a turning point, as New Zealand forward Dylan Thomas extended his sides lead to 3-1 just 2 minutes from the whistle. Pakistan weren't helped by an early Rizwan Ali green card in the final period, as New Zealand looked to improve their goal difference. Inglis, Sean Findlay and Thomas all had early opportunities but the Pakistan defence held up. A quieter final period ensued, however there was time for Sam Lane to add a 4th New Zealand goal in the final minute and wrap up a 4-1 victory. Blair Tarrant (NZL)said: “It was a bit wet this morning but we're used to these conditions back home. I think we put in a really good effort defensively and then avoided the constant pressure, but they snuck a few under." Results (Men's Competition): New Zealand 4 Pakistan 1 (Pool A men) Umpires: Daniel Barstow (GBR) Tyler Klenk (CAN) Sean Rapaport (RSA-video) Australia 12 vs Scotland 0 (Pool A men) Umpires: Deepak Chandra Joshi (IND) Bruce Bale (ENG) Nick Bennett (ENG-video) England 4 Wales 2 (Pool B men) Umpires: Stephen Rogers (AUS) Sean Rapaport (RSA) David Tomlinson (NZL-video) India 11 Ghana 0 (Pool B men) Umpires: Fraser Bell (SCO) Tim Bond (NZL) Peter Obalo Kabaso (KEN-video) Results (Women’s Competition): Canada 0 England 1 (Pool A women) Umpires: Cookie Tan (SGP) Aleisha Neumann (AUS) Wanri Venter (RSA-video) South Africa 0 Australia 5 (Pool B women) Umpires: Rachel Williams (ENG) Amber Church (NZL) Hannah Harrison (ENG)

Sports Bulletin Report Birmingham (UK):-A thrilling draw between South Africa and Pakistan men’s sides kicked off day 2 of the games, as Wales men put on an impressive display against Canada to round out the morning session. The afternoon session saw Australia and England’s women both register big wins, while the evening session included an Indian women’s win and New Zealand being tested by a dogged Scotland side.    South Africa 2 Pakistan 2 (Pool A men) Pakistan snatched a late equaliser against South Africa in both sides opening tie of the games. The first quarter started with some early South African pressure, Matthew Guise-Brown having a couple of efforts blocked before striking the post in the 12th minute. After Akmal Hussain was shown a yellow card at the latter end of the half the pressure told as South Africa’s Connor Beauchamp fired home his sides opening goal of the tournament from a penalty corner. Just 6 minutes into the second quarter the lively Beauchamp was again causing the Pakistan defence problems, seeing an effort saved by Pakistan’s keeper, Abdullah Ishtiaq. Pakistan stood firm before launching an attack of their own, resulting in Rizwan Ali converting from a penalty corner to level up the tie in the 25th minute. Chances followed for both sides but the score remained level heading into half time. South Africa began the third quarter on the front foot, with Daniel Bell having 2 attempts on goal but to no avail. Pakistan then took the initiative and created their own opportunities, Mubashar Ali and Ajaz Ahmad both having efforts at goal either side of a Nqobile Ntuli green card. A back-and-forth quarter with no goals left the game finely balanced heading into the last period. The final period of the game followed the pattern of the tie as both sides created openings. Abdul Shahid with the first of the quarter in the early stages for Pakistan, followed by a fresh from suspension counter-punch from Ntuli. Neither men were able to convert though and it was Guise-Brown who found the net to put South Africa 2-1 ahead with not long to go. Pakistan hit back with their own chance, Ali looking to add to his goal earlier in the game but seeing his effort saved. Just as it looked as though South Africa had edged out the encounter Pakistan’s Afraz became the hero, equalising following a penalty corner in the final minute to rescue a point for his side. Results (July 30, 2022): South Africa 2 Pakistan 2 (Pool A men) Umpires: Nick Bennett (GBR) Bruce Bale (GBR) Daniel Barstow (GBR-video) Canada 1 Wales 5 (Pool B men) Umpires: David Tomlinson (NZL) Fraser Bell (GBR) Stephen Rogers (AUS-video) Result’s Women’s Competition Australia 8 Kenya 0 (Pool B women) Umpires: Cathy Wright (GBR) Katrina Turner (NZL) Rachel WILLIAMS (GBR-video) England 12 Ghana 0 (Pool A women) Umpires: Wanri Venter (RSA) Rhiannon Murrie (AUS) Amber Church (NZL–video) India 3 Wales 1 (Pool A women) Umpires: Cookie Tan (SGP) Lelia Sacre (CAN) Amber Church (NZL–video) New Zealand 1 Scotland 0 Umpires: Aleisha Neumann (AUS) Rebecca Woodcock (ENG) Hannah Harrison (ENG-video)

Sports Bulletin Report Lausanne (Switzerland):-It seems only yesterday that the flame went down in Tokyo at the end of the Olympic Games in that wonderful city. A few months of reflection on the part of all involved – athletes, coaches, officials, volunteers and organisers – and then it is time to look to the future. In this case, the future is in the beautiful city Paris. It is two years until the action will be underway for the Olympic Games Paris 2024 hockey competition which takes place between 27 July and 9 August 2024 at Yves-du-Manoir Stadium. The Yves-du-Manoir Stadium is steeped in Olympic history. It was 100 years ago in 1924 that the stadium itself played host to the opening ceremony and then provided the venue for eight disciplines. France itself has a deep relationship with hockey as 2024 is also 100 years since the FIH was created in France by Paul Léautey, the first President of hockey’s world governing body. To mark the start of the refurbishment of the stadium, on 11 May this year Paris 2024 President Tony Estanguet took part in the ceremony of laying the first stone of the Yves-du-Manoir Stadium. The work is due to be completed in January 2024 and test events will take place ahead of the Games in May 2024. The refurbished stadium will become the national centre for hockey and home to the French Hockey Federation. Within the sport of hockey, which has featured for the first time at the Olympic Games in 1908, there is one person for whom the hockey competition in Paris is already filling every waking hour. Antoine Berger is the Hockey Manager for Paris 2024. He joined the organisation in January 2022. ‘Since I joined the adventure in January this year I have been mostly focused on the venue plans both for the games and the legacy aspect, making sure that the athletes’ and spectators’ needs are at the centre of all we do,’ he said. ‘All of this is always in a very collaborative relationship with the International Hockey Federation and with the French Hockey Federation (FFH). Of course this also means working on the competition schedule, the level of services for the athletes and everything linked to the competition aspect.’ Berger says his key focus is to push the conversation about hockey at every opportunity. He is working with the FFH to raise the profile of the sport across French communities. National federations will be acutely aware of the major milestones between now and the opening ceremony, which is now exactly two years away. Teams will have two opportunities to qualify: through the continental championships and then through the FIH Olympic Qualification Tournaments. These events are as follows: The Oceania Cup (expected in April 2023) The African Road to Paris (expected in July/August 2023) The Euro Hockey Nation Championships in August 2023 The Asian Games in September/October 2023 The 19th Pan American Games in October 2023

Sports Bulletin Report ISLAMABAD:-Pakistan hockey players and officials left Islamabad for Birmingham to participate in the 22nd Commonwealth Games 2022, which will be started from July 28 with an opening ceremony and hockey contingent will also be representing their country in the ceremony. Pakistan squad embarked on international flight at Islamabad International Airport. It is important to mention here that Pakistan had won silver medal in 2006 Commonwealth, as they lost final against New Zeeland. An official said on the airport that Pakistan team would produce acceptable performance in the event. Names of players: Goalkeepers: Akmal Hussain, Abdullah Ishtiaq Khan Full-backs: Mubasher Ali, Imad Shakeel Butt, Mohammad Hammaduddin Anjum, Mohammad Abdullah, Rizwan Ali Half-backs: Mohammad Umar Bhatta, Moeen Shakeel, Abdul Manan, Junaid Manzoor, Ghazanfar Ali Forwards: Attackers Ejaz Ahmed, Rana Abdul Waheed, Roman, Afraz, Abdul Hanan Shahid, Ahmed Nadeem Team Officials: Syed Sameer Hussain (Manager), Siegfried Aikman (Head Coach), Nadeem Khan Lodhi (Video Analyst), Adeel Akhtar (Physiotherapist).

Sports Bulletin Report Lausanne (Switzerland):-The Commonwealth Games has a rich sporting tradition that goes back to 1930. In its earliest iteration, the multi-sport event featured 11 nations and 400 athletes. Now, in its 22nd edition, 4,600 athletes from 72 nations and territories will be participating in the English city of Birmingham in the event known as the Friendly Games. Hockey has been played at the Commonwealth Games since 1998 and in that first year it was Australia who dominated, winning gold in both the men’s and women’s competitions. Malaysia men and England women took silver, while England men and New Zealand women won the bronze medals. Australia men have dominated ever since – the Kookaburras have won the title an unbeaten six times, with New Zealand, Malaysia, India and Pakistan sharing the silver medals between them. India men and women will both be searching for medals. Both teams enjoyed an exceptional first season in FIH Pro League, finishing in third position in their respective leagues. India men will take the confidence of their Pro League wins against England, plus the incredible match which ended in a 3-3 draw with Belgium. Both sets of results suggest that India are more than ready to challenge for a first gold medal at this event. Potentially one of the most exciting teams to arrive in Birmingham is the South Africa men’s team. The side set the Tokyo Olympics alight in 2021 with their dazzling speed and courage to take chances in attack. The Cassiem brothers, Mustapha and Dayaan are now well-known players among hockey fans, but also watch out for the penalty corner specialists Connor Beauchamp and Matt Guise-Brown. Scotland men and women both finished in respectable positions in 2018. The men were placed sixth while the women finished seventh. This time all eyes will be on captain and goal scorer extraordinaire Alan Forsyth as he will earn his 200 combined Great Britain and Scotland cap in his first match in Birmingham. Sarah Robertson will be fulfilling an equally important leadership role as she uses all the experience she gained in Tokyo to lead her exciting squad to achieve a high placed finish in Birmingham. Pakistan men finished second in 2006 and would dearly love to get on the podium again. The national team has dropped off in recent years from their heady days in the 1970s and 80s. They won gold at the Asian Champions Trophy in 2018 but that was their last significant win. While a lack of recent international experience might be a burden, expect this team, led by experienced Head Coach Seigfried Aikman, to be competitive in every match they play. Ghana is another nation where hockey has been developing apace at grass roots level and the results are showing higher up the chain. Most of the players from both the men’s and women’s teams are drawn from teams representing the national services – police, army and fire service. This edition will be the first time Ghana men have qualified for the Commonwealth Games, while the women’s team first appeared in 2018, where they finished 10th. For Ghana women, the Commonwealth Games is a great opportunity to test themselves on the world stage as they so often just fail to qualify for major events because they tend to lose out to South Africa. For both teams, the event in Birmingham will provide invaluable experience as the teams continue to grow and develop. For their part, the athletes can be relied upon to bring their own style of fast-flowing, attacking hockey and a real joie de vivre as they compete. Host nation England must be going into this event hopeful of medals for both teams. The England men’s team showed enormous potential in the FIH Pro League with some exciting and close matches, including a 2-2 draw with Belgium and a thrilling 4-3 narrow defeat to India. The team is not yet the finished article but with talent such as Zach Wallace, Will Calnan, Ian Sloan and penalty corner specialists Nick Bandurak and Sam Ward in the the team, the host nation could be there at the business end. England women exited the Women’s World Cup after a narrow defeat at the hands of eventual silver medallists, Argentina. Like the men, this is a side that is still building but there is talent aplenty in the ranks. Dependable defenders Hollie Pearne-Webb, Laura Unsworth and Giselle Ansley provide a platform from which the speed merchants Hannah Martin, Lily Owsley and Ellie Rayer can attack. Tess Howard is turning into a force to be reckoned with in the circle. England have never failed to win a medal in the women’s competition but, in front of a home crowd, this time the ambition has to be gold.

Sports Bulletin Report Lausanne (Switzerland):-After the resignation of Dr Narinder Dhruv Batra from the post of FIH President earlier this week, the Members of the Executive Board (EB) of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) have officially accepted the resignation of Dr Narinder Dhruv Batra. Body unanimously appointed FIH EB Member and President of the African Hockey Federation Seif Ahmed (Egypt) as Acting President until the next Presidential elections and confirmed that the upcoming FIH Congress will be held virtually, as planned, on 4-5 November 2022, with the Presidential elections taking place on 5 November Seif Ahmed was a member of Egypt’s national team in 1968 and has a long association with the sport as both an umpire and a technical official. He has been Treasurer and now President of the African Hockey Federation (AfHF) and is a former member of the Egyptian Olympic Committee. Seif was given the FIH President’s Award in 1999 and the FIH Order or Merit in 2002 in recognition of his long, distinguished and valuable services to hockey. He joined the FIH Executive Board in 2004. His term as Executive Board Member will end in August 2023.

Sports Bulletin Report Lausanne (Switzerland):-Dr Narinder Dhruv Batra has informed the Members of the Executive Board (EB) of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) of his resignation from the post of FIH President which he currently holds. As stipulated in the FIH Statutes (Article 7.4 a), “the Executive Board shall appoint an acting President to hold office until the FIH Congress appoints a person to fill the vacancy”. Therefore, a meeting of the EB will be organised as soon as possible. In accordance with the same article, the next Presidential elections will take place during the upcoming FIH Congress which is planned to be held virtually on 4 and 5 November this year. Any details about the Presidential elections process will be confirmed at a later stage.

Sports Bulletin Report Lausanne (Switzerland):-After completion of the bidding process for hosting the 2026 FIH Hockey Men’s and Women’s World Cups, the International Hockey Federation (FIH) has announced that bids from four continents (Africa, Americas, Europe and Oceania), to host either one or both World Cups, have been received. 2026 FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup: Australia (host city: Melbourne/Geelong, Perth, Sydney, Brisbane /Gold Coast – to be confirmed) South Africa (host city: Potchefstroom) Uruguay (host city: to be confirmed) 2026 FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup: England, in partnership with Wales (host cities: to be confirmed) Germany (host city: to be confirmed) South Africa (host city: Potchefstroom) 2026 FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup and 2026 FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup combined (= being played at the same time): Belgium/Netherlands (host cities: Wavre and Amstelveen) South Africa (host city: Potchefstroom) The hosts will be decided at the Executive Board meeting on 3 November and announced at the FIH Congress which will be held virtually on 4-5 November this year. FIH CEO Thierry Weil said: “On behalf of FIH, I’d like to thank all National Associations who are bidding for our flagship events. We’re looking at really strong, and also diverse, bids here. We will now conduct a thorough analysis of each dossier so that the Event Bidding Task Force is fully informed of all aspects when making their recommendation to the Executive Board.” The FIH Hockey World Cup, for Women like for Men, is the pinnacle of FIH events. Being played every 4 years, both the Men’s and the Women’s World Cup involve sixteen teams amongst the best ones in the world. It will be the sixteenth edition of the World Cups in 2026. The next FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup will be played next month (from 1 to 17 July) in Terrassa, Spain and Amsterdam, Netherlands, whilst the next FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup will take place in January 2023 in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela, India.

Raja Hafeez Ahmed Lausanne (Switzerland):-FIH CEO Thierry Weil reflects on the Hero FIH Hockey5s Lausanne 2022 which took place in the Olympic Capital on 4 and 5 June. Thierry, what do you keep in mind from this first Hero FIH Hockey5s Lausanne 2022? What I particularly enjoyed was the fact that people having a walk at the Place de la Navigation around the lake in Lausanne, stopped, looked at what was going on and eventually decided to move into the stadium and watch the games! This was exactly the purpose of this event: bringing hockey to people. Then of course the huge enthusiasm of the players to play this format – for some of them for the first time – as well as the intensity of the matches were a blessing. India men – considered as pre-tournament favourites – won. But for the women, the winners were Uruguay, therefore confirming that Hockey5s enables nations who are not necessarily regarded as powerhouses of world hockey to excel. How do you look at this? Here again, this is fantastic since one of the main reasons why FIH has decided to boost the promotion of Hockey5s is precisely because this format enables some smaller nations to play at the same level as the traditionally bigger ones and even beat them! Extrapolating from this, it means that numerous nations in the world could start hockey with Hockey5s, which it’s simpler and cheaper to put in place. Speaking of India, what do you think of the current situation with Hockey India? It’s 100% clear that every National Association has to make sure that its Statutes are compliant with the sports code of the local authorities. Therefore, if this is not the case for Hockey India at the moment, then this has to happen. However, this situation does not affect FIH’s full trust in Hockey India. Indeed, Hockey India has been and continues to be a key actor of the development of our sport, not only in the country, but also for the world, as an outstanding organiser of numerous FIH events. How can Hockey5s support the overall growth of hockey? Hockey5s is a great lever to boost the growth of hockey at the global level. Thanks to its less restrictive infrastructure – smaller field – but also to the required number of players, the practice of Hockey5s can be a real development asset for many nations in the world. Developing the sport is the number 1 mission of any international federation. The same goes for FIH. This is why, among other things, the FIH has decided to create a Hockey5s World Cup (first edition in 2024). In addition, the size of the field also makes it possible to anchor the Hockey5s in the heart of cities, giving it an urban dimension that is very fashionable and attractive, especially among young people. Finally, Hockey5s is an excellent springboard, a "gateway", to 11-a-side hockey.

Raja Hafeez Ahmed Lausanne (Switzerland):-After 2 days of swashbuckling Hockey5s action through 22 total games, we have our first ever winners of the Hockey5s event, with Uruguay, who won every match they played at the event, overcoming hosts Switzerland in the women’s final to become the Women’s Champions; while India who started the event as favourites in the men’s event, lived up to the billing prevailing over Poland to become the inaugural Champions in the Men’s event. Overcast conditions in Lausanne proved to be a foreshadowing of the day to come as it rained goals throughout the day with teams getting more familiar with the format of the game and the tactics best suited to prevail in it. India, the eventual champions set the tone for the day with an offensive masterclass in a 7-3 win over Malaysia and from there the barrage of goals never ceased with a total of 78 goals scored in the 10 games! Switzerland men caused the biggest upset of the day with a 7-5 win over Pakistan in a game that they trailed for most parts but kept finding ways to come back! India defeated Poland with another clinical attacking performance in the group stage match which left Pakistan to win their final match against Malaysia to seal their place in the finals. Malaysia, who had just 1 point from their first 3 games, brought their A-game into their last match and played out a thrilling 5-5 draw against Pakistan in a game where the lead swung from every couple of minutes! The draw for Pakistan meant Poland finished over them in the 2nd position with 2 wins and 2 losses, and moved to the finals against India who ended the group stage with 3 wins and a draw. On the women’s side, Uruguay won their 3rd and 4th match of the pool stage against South Africa and Poland to go 4 for 4 and finish top of the table with comfortable ease. The 2nd final’s spot was up for grabs for all the other 4 teams however. Hosts Switzerland who started the day in the 2nd place lost their opening encounter to India and had to rely on other results to make it to the finals. India and South Africa played the final pool stage game and after a thrilling 4-4 draw, it was the Swiss fairytale that continued to the final. The women’s final started off with an early goal from the home team on the back of a booming crowd that certainly believed in their team. But Uruguay showed no nerves and went about their business in the calmest of manners and within 5 minutes of going behind they had not only restored parity, but also found a second and third goal to take a comfortable 2 goal lead into the half time. Skipper Manuela Vilar found the goal twice and Teresa Viana, who finished as the Top Goal Scorer and Best Player overall, found the third. The second of the game was a clinic in game management from Uruguay as they bossed possession and killed off any hopes of a Swiss comeback to win the finals by a 3-1 margin, becoming the inaugural champions of the Hero FIH Hockey5s Lausanne 2022! If there were any doubts about the ability of the Hockey5 format to upset the pecking order, it was erased within 4 minutes of the Men’s finals, as Poland, who were the distinct underdogs, shocked India with 3 goals before India could find their feet in the game! But with 16 minutes left in the game, Indian nerves were settled by a thumping goal by Sanjay that got them going. Captain Gurinder got a second goal before the half time, that allowed India to trail by just 1 goal going into the half, and the game was anyone’s to win! India had all the momentum going into the half and they started the second half in a similar vein. Boby Singh Dhami got India the leveller in the 1st minute and that was followed by some genius from the Player of the Tournament and Top Goal Scorer Raheel Mohammed scoring 2 goals to give India a 2-goal lead. Poland got a 4th goal that could have got them a way back into the game, but once again it was Raheel Mohammed who brilliantly set up another goal for Boby Singh Dhami that effectively ended the game with just 1 minute left. Awards: Best Goalkeeper (Women): Ursina Fazis (SUI) Best Player (Women): Teresa Viana (URU) Top Scorer (Women): Teresa Viana (URU) Best Goalkeeper (Men): Lars Kleikemper (SUI) Best Player (Men): Mohammed Raheel (IND) Top Scorer (Men): Mohammed Raheel (IND)