FIH Olympic Qualifiers 2024, 3rd place match - India Women's Olympic dream ends with 1-0 loss to Japan

In a crucial match for Team India, the women's hockey squad faced another heartbreaking defeat, losing 1-0 to Japan in the bronze medal match of the Women's FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers 2024 at Ranchi's Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Astro Turf Stadium. Unfortunately, this loss means the end of their Olympic dream as well, as only the top three teams will advance to Paris. This was their second consecutive loss, after their defeat against Germany in the semi-finals.

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This marks the first time since 2016 that the team has failed to qualify for the Olympics. Failing to qualify for Paris, especially after they had reached the semi-finals in the Tokyo Olympics will be a difficult pill to swallow, especially after having a home advantage.

Japan secured the only goal early in the first quarter and then focused on defending, preventing the Indian women from scoring or converting any penalties. Despite earning nine penalty corners, India was unable to convert any of them. The defeat is particularly disheartening as the team had previously lost 2-2 (3-4) in a penalty shootout against Germany in the semi-final.

Soon after the final hooter, the Indian players sunk to their knees while the Japanese players ran towards each other in celebration. The jam-packed Ranchi crowd, which was cheering for the Indian team were silenced as the only noise came from the celebratory sounds of the few Japanese people around. 

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The Indian contingent was seen in tears, and coach Janneke Schopman was seen talking to them in a huddle. The Japanese coach, the former Indian Olympian Jude Menezes, was seen falling to one knee, gently punching the turf beneath him, before looking up to the skies with a smile.

On the other hand, Japan, after losing 2-1 to the USA in the first semi-final, rebounded with a victory against India, securing their spots in the Olympics alongside Germany and the USA, who had already qualified.