Dutch aiming for the double
The orange colour will be dominant once more in the stands for both finals
In the world of sports our game of hockey is a small sport. Whatever some might claim with fake and inflated numbers we’re not in the top 10 sports globally. Not by a long shot… In the Netherlands however hockey is among the bigger sports, for both men and women. That shows in the rankings…
Before the finals are played today and tomorrow in the Paris Games it’s the Dutch who are ranked global number one for both men and women. But even more special is the fact that for the third time in the history of hockey they have a shot at gold for both men and women.
In 2004 in Athens the Dutch played Australia in the men’s event and Gemany in the women’s tournament. They lost both finals and took home two silver medals.
In 2012 in London the men in orange played Germany in the final and the Dutch women were up against Argentina. The women won, the men lost and they took home 1 gold and 1 silver.
In 2024 in Paris it’s the Dutch again in both finals. Will they bring home two gold medals? The men play the Germans, a repeat of the 2012 London final. The women are up against the Chinese, a repeat of the 2008 Beijing final.
Germany is the only other country that ever had the same opportunity to take home two gold medals. But we have to go back to last century for that event. At the 1992 Barcelona Games the Germans played both finals and were the first country ever to accomplish this. The German men won gold vs Australia but the women had to make do with silver, losing to Spain.
So if…. and it’s a big if… the Dutch win both gold medals here in Paris it would be the first time in the history of hockey this happens. But this is the obviously the Dutch fan inside of me speaking. Let’s first and foremost enjoy two exciting finals…
At 2pm Paris time today it’s the bronze medal game for the men between India and Spain.
Today, August 8 at 7pm Paris time it’s the men’s final between the Netherlands and Germany.
Tomorrow, August 9 at 8pm Paris time the women play for gold in the game between the Netherlands and China.
Before that , tomorrow at 2pm Paris time it’s Belgium v Argentina for the bronze medal.
Let’s enjoy our hockey and may the best team win 😉