The Indian men's hockey team, Asian Games champions and Tokyo Olympics bronze medallists, faces a challenging task as they have been placed in Pool B for the upcoming Paris Games. The pool includes reigning Olympic champions Belgium, formidable Australia, Rio Games gold medallist Argentina, New Zealand, and Ireland.
India, currently ranked third in the world, has been drawn into a competitive pool where they will encounter strong opposition. Pool A consists of the Netherlands, Germany, Great Britain, Spain, France, and South Africa.
The announcement of the pools for both men's and women's hockey competitions was made by the International Hockey Federation after the conclusion of the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers on Sunday.
In the women's competition, India will not be represented in Paris, as they failed to qualify after finishing fourth in the Olympic Qualifiers in Ranchi. Germany, the USA, and Japan secured their berths from the Ranchi event.
The women's competition in Paris will see reigning Olympic champions Netherlands in Pool A with Belgium, Germany, Japan, China, and hosts France. Pool B comprises Australia, current silver medallist Argentina, Great Britain, Spain, the USA, and South Africa.
The participating teams have been assigned to their respective pools based on the FIH World Rankings as of Sunday. The top four teams from each pool in both men's and women's competitions will advance to the quarterfinals.
The Paris Olympics are scheduled to take place from July 26 to August 11, with hockey competitions starting on July 27 and concluding on August 9.
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