The 2022 Asian Games has been postponed over COVID fears. Meanwhile, the Indian hockey players are disappointed but are counting the positives from the same.
In what comes as a setback for sports fans, the Asian Games 2022 has been postponed indefinitely. The event was slated to take place in Hangzhou from September 10-25. However, the surging COVID cases in China have forced the organisers and Olympic Council Asia (OCA) to delay the event. Meanwhile, the Indian hockey players are unhappy with the situation.
India, which won bronze during the previous event in Jakarta, in 2018, was looking to come up with a stellar performance and bag the bronze to guarantee its entry into the 2024 Paris Olympics. While the news dates of the competition are awaited, the Indians feel that there are positives to the postponement. Some feel that it could allow top players to feature in the Birmingham Commonwealth Games 2022.
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Speaking to PTI, veteran Indian goalkeeper PR Sreejesh said, "Yes, it's a disappointment but somewhere down the line we were expecting it considering the situation in China. But, we want to look at it [postponement] from a positive point of view because the postponement means we will get more time to prepare for the Asian Games."
On the other hand, an unnamed senior Indian player told the agency, "It is really sad that the Asian Games are postponed. After the Tokyo Olympics success and some fine performances in the Pro League matches, we are determined to qualify for the Paris Games through the Asian Games. We have been growing from strength to strength under Janekke Schopman and the team looked in a good rhythm. Now, there is uncertainty about when the Games will happen, but we will continue to put in the hard yards in our training."
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Meanwhile, a Hockey India (HI) official added, "Earlier, we decided to send separate teams for CWG and Asiad because of just 32 days turnaround between the two events and we wanted our main team to peak in Asian Games, which is a qualifier for Paris Olympics. But, now that the Asian Games are postponed we can include players from the senior teams in CWG."