Hockey India announced a 39-member core group selected for the Men's National Coaching Camp.
This camp is scheduled to commence on January 3, 2024, at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) in Bengaluru.
The camp, which will span 11 days, is a preparatory step before the team's departure to Cape Town, South Africa. There, the Indian men's hockey team will compete in a 4-Nation Tournament against France, the Netherlands, and the host nation, South Africa.
The tournament in South Africa serves as an important part of the team's preparation for the upcoming Paris Olympic Games. It also precedes India's FIH Hockey Pro League campaign opener in Odisha this February, where they will face Australia, the Netherlands, Spain, and Ireland in double-header matches.
The core group includes a mix of goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders, and forwards. Among the goalkeepers are Krishan Bahadur Pathak, Sreejesh Parattu Raveendran, Suraj Karkera, Pawan Malik, and Prashant Kumar Chauhan.
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The defence line-up features players like Harmanpreet Singh, Jarmanpreet Singh, Surender Kumar, Varun Kumar, Amit Rohidas, Gurinder Singh, Jugraj Singh, Mandeep Mor, Nilam Sanjeep Xess, Sanjay, Yashdeep Siwach, Dipsan Tirkey, and Manjeet.
The midfielders called up for the camp include Manpreet Singh, Hardik Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Moirangthem Rabichandra Singh, Shamsher Singh, Nilakanta Sharma, Rajkumar Pal, Sumit, Akashdeep Singh, Gurjant Singh, Mohd. Raheel Mouseen, and Maninder Singh. The forward line boasts talents such as S. Karthi, Mandeep Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Abhishek, Dilpreet Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, Simranjeet Singh, Shilanand Lakra, and Pawan Rajbhar.
Craig Fulton, the Chief Coach of the Indian Men’s Hockey Team, expressed optimism about the upcoming season, highlighting the freshness of the players returning from their holiday break. He emphasized the importance of the South Africa Tour as the starting point of a busy year leading up to the Paris Olympics. Fulton also mentioned that some players named in the core group would participate in the FIH Hockey5s World Cup in Muscat, Oman.
This announcement sets the stage for what promises to be an exciting and crucial period for the Indian men's hockey team as they gear up for international competitions and aim for success at the Paris Olympic Games.
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