Indian men’s hockey team beat Spain 2-1 in Paris 2024 Olympics on Thursday to clinch its second straight bronze medal at the Summer Games.
Overall, the Men in Blue bagged a record-extending 13th Olympic medal, the most by any team.
Coached by Craig Fulton, here are the 16 members of the bronze medal-winning squad from Paris 2024:
Goalkeeper - PR Sreejesh (Career Matches played - 336)
Indian goalkeeper PR Sreejesh. | Photo Credit: GETTY IMAGES
Goalkeeper PR Sreejesh, a former captain of the national team, had already announced that he will retire from the sport after Paris Olympics. While he made outstanding saves in every match, the 36-year-old proved to be the hero of the quarterfinal against Great Britain where he helped the team win 4-2 in shootout. Overall, he faced 62 shots across eight games and saved 50 of them.
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Sreejesh, who hails from Kizhakkambalam village in Kerala, played a vital part in the bronze medal win at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics also. He won the FIH Player of the Year Awards (2020-21, 2022).
Since winning the gold at the 2014 Asian Games, he also enabled his team to win gold medal again at the 2022 Asian Games. He won a total of 17 international medals.
Defender - Jarmanpreet Singh (Career Matches played - 114)
Indian defender Jarmanpreet Singh. | Photo Credit: GETTY IMAGES
The Amritsar-born Jarmanpreet made his debut as an Olympian at Paris. Singh was part of the Indian junior team at the 2016 World Cup. He made his senior international debut at the 2018 Hockey Champions Trophy where India won the silver medal. At the 2022 Asian Games, Jarmanpreet was part of the gold-medal winning Indian team.
Defender - Amit Rohidas (Career Matches played - 191)
Indian defender Amit Rohidas. | Photo Credit: GETTY IMAGES
Amit Rohidas is very crucial for the Indian backline as he acts as the first rusher when the team defends a Penalty Corner. He was part of the Indian squad which won the bronze at the 2020 Olympics.
Amit, who hails from Sundergarh in Odisha, was also part of the gold medal-winning team at the 2014 and 2022 Asian Games. Rohidas was instrumental in the Indian team’s gold-medal winning effort at the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy.
Defender - Harmanpreet Singh (Career Matches played - 227)
Indian defender and captain Harmanpreet Singh. | Photo Credit: AP
Harmanpreet Singh is the captain, defender as well as the penalty corner specialist of the team. He is regarded as one of the best drag flickers in the world and he proved it in Paris as he scored 10 goals out of which seven came from PCs.
The Amritsar-born Harmanpreet made his Olympic debut in 2016. He was also instrumental in India’s third-place finish at the 2021-22 FIH Pro League where he ended as top-scorer with 18 goals.
At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, he won a bronze and was instrumental in his team’s silver medal win at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. He also captained his team to a gold medal at the 2022 Asian Games. Harmanpreet was named the men’s player of the year at FIH Player of the Year Awards for 2020-21.
Defender - Sumit Walmiki (Career Matches played - 142)
Indian midfielder Sumit Walmiki. | Photo Credit: REUTERS
Sumit Walmiki is one of the defenders in the Indian men’s hockey team. The player from Sonipat was part of the Indian squad which won the 2016 men’s hockey Junior World Cup. He made his senior debut at the 2017 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup. He was part of the Indian men’s hockey team which won gold medal at the 2022 Asian Games.
Defender - Sanjay (Career Matches played - 43)
Indian defender Sanjay. | Photo Credit: AP
Sanjay plays as a defender in the Indian men’s hockey team. The player from Dabra village near Hisar in Haryana was part of the Indian team which won the gold at the 2022 Asian Games. He is also one of the second drag flickers for the team.
Midfielder - Rajkumar Pal (Career Matches played - 62)
Indian midfielder Rajkumar Pal. | Photo Credit: AP
Rajkumar Pal is a midfielder in the Indian men’s hockey team. The player from Karampur village in Ghazipur district of Uttar Pradesh made his international debut in February 2020 at the Men’s FIH Pro League. He was instrumental in India claiming a bronze at the 2022 Asia Cup and 2021 Asian Champions Trophy.
Midfielder - Shamsher Singh (Career Matches played - 103)
Indian forward Shamsher Singh. | Photo Credit: REUTERS
Shamsher Singh plays as a midfielder in the Indian men’s hockey team. He made his international debut at the 2019 Men’s Ready Steady Tokyo Hockey tournament.
The player from Attari village in Amritsar was instrumental in India claiming bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and also was part of the Indian team that won the gold at the 2022 Asian Games and the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy.
He was part of the Indian hockey team that won silver at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
Midfielder - Manpreet Singh (Career Matches played - 378)
Indian midfielder Manpreet Singh. | Photo Credit: Getty Images
Manpreet Singh is a midfielder in the Indian men’s hockey team. Manpreet, one of the most experienced members of the squad, led the team to the bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
The player from Mithapur village on the outskirts of Jalandhar in Punjab made his debut at the age of 19. He represented India at the 2012 Olympics and was named Asia’s Junior Player of the Year in 2014.
At the 2014 and 2022 Asian Games, he was part of the Indian team that won the gold medal. At the 2017 Asia Cup, he was instrumental in India claiming a gold.
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Midfielder - Hardik Singh (Career Matches played - 142)
Indian midfielder Hardik Singh. | Photo Credit: REUTERS
Hardik Singh is a midfielder in the Indian men’s hockey team.
Trained by his uncle and former India drag-flicker Jugraj Singh, Hardik made his senior team debut at the 2018 Asian Champions Trophy, where India secured the gold medal. Five years later, at the same tournament, he was one of the stars of another gold medal-winning campaign.
Hardik, who hails from Khusropur village of Jalandhar district, was part of the Indian team that won the bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and he was also instrumental in the gold medal-winning campaign at the 2022 Asian Games.
Midfielder - Vivek Sagar Prasad (Career Matches played - 151)
Indian midfielder Vivek Sagar Prasad. | Photo Credit: AP
Vivek Sagar Prasad plays as a midfielder for the Indian men’s hockey team. He scored the team’s second goal during the 3-2 win over New Zealand in its first group-stage match.
The player from Itarsi, Madhya Pradesh, played an important part in the bronze medal-winning campaign at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
In January 2018, he became the second youngest player ever to debut for India at 17 years, 10 months and 22 days. He was named the FIH Rising Star of 2019. At the 2020-21 FIH Player of the Year Awards, he was named the FIH Young Player of the Year.
Forward - Abhishek (Career Matches played - 82)
Indian forward Abhishek. | Photo Credit: AP
Abhishek plays as a forward for the national team. In Paris, the player from Sonipat scored one goal each against Belgium and Australia in the team’s last two group games. He made his international debut in February 2022 at the 2021-22 FIH Pro League.
At the 2022 Asian Games, he was part of the Indian team that won the gold. He was also part of the Indian team that won silver at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
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Forward - Sukhjeet Singh (Career Matches played - 78)
Indian forward Sukhjeet Singh. | Photo Credit: AP
Sukhjeet Singh was selected for the national side in 2018 but sustained a back injury which left him unable to join. He finally made his debut at the 2022-23 FIH Pro League in India’s match against Spain. He scored six goals in the tournament.
The player, who hails from Jawandpur village of Taran Taran district in Punjab, was part of the Indian team that won gold at the 2022 Asian Games and 2023 Asian Champions Trophy.
In Paris, he scored the second equaliser for the side during the 3-2 loss to Germany in the semifinals.
Forward - Lalit Kumar Upadhyay (Career Matches played - 176)
Indian forward Lalit Kumar Upadhyay. | Photo Credit: AP
Lalit Kumar Upadhyay plays as a forward for the national team. The Varanasi-born Upadhyay was a member of the Indian team that won the bronze at the 2020 Olympic Games and was instrumental in India getting gold at the 2022 Asian Games.
He was also a member of the 2016 and 2018 Asian Champions Trophy-winning squads.
Forward - Mandeep Singh (Career Matches played - 252)
Indian forward Mandeep Singh. | Photo Credit: AP
Mandeep Singh plays as a forward in the national team. In Paris, he scored the team’s first goal during the 3-2 win over New Zealand in the first group stage match.
The Jalandhar-born Mandeep was part of the Indian team that won bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. He played a crucial part in the gold medal-winning effort of the Indian team at the 2022 Asian Games.
At the 2018 and 2023 Asian Champions Trophy, he was part of the Indian team that won gold at both the events.
Forward - Gurjant Singh (Career Matches played - 124)
Indian forward Gurjant Singh. | Photo Credit: REUTERS
Gurjant Singh plays as a forward in the national team.
The player from Amritsar was part of the Indian squad which won gold at the 2016 Junior Hockey World Cup. He was also part of the Indian team that won gold at the 2022 Asian Games.
He was instrumental in India’s gold winning efforts at the 2018 and 2023 Asian Champions Trophy.
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