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The Netherlands accomplished a exceptional double in Olympic hockey on Friday when their girls’s crew, the defending champions, beat China 3-1 in a shootout to take gold simply 24 hours after the lads’s aspect had triumphed over Germany. The Dutch girls, who had been showing of their sixth successive remaining, had been made to work arduous for his or her fifth Olympic gold medal after the Chinese language held them to a 1-1 attract regulation time. Chen Yi put the Chinese language forward after simply six minutes and regardless of intense Dutch stress all through they gave the impression to be heading for his or her first Olympic gold.
9 minutes from time, nonetheless, ace penalty nook shooter Yibbi Jansen rifled in her ninth aim of the match to degree the scores.
Dutch goalie Anne Veenendaal saved the primary two Chinese language efforts within the shoot-out and when she saved out Ma Ning’s try as properly the celebrations started for the military of Dutch supporters on the Yves du Manoir Stadium in Colombes.
“It was incredible,” mentioned Dutch coach Paul van Ass.
“The Chinese language did very properly, it helped them scoring a pleasant aim rapidly.
“It was arduous to interrupt down their defence. We attacked properly, the one factor did not work was gaining penalty corners.”
It’s the first time ever {that a} nation has doubled up on the Olympic hockey – the lads’s crew additionally needing a shootout to get previous Germany.
It marked China’s second silver medal, following their success at residence in Beijing in 2008.
“Six months in the past, a 12 months in the past, two years in the past, we would not have thought we would be right here. That is simply wonderful,” mentioned their Australian coach Alyson Annan who led the Dutch to Olympic success in Tokyo earlier than leaving in controversial circumstances in 2022.
“I assumed we had been able to this. I assumed that we may win. They bought the nook. Typically the luck falls your approach.
“We did the whole lot we may. They had been simply higher within the shootout at the moment.”
The Dutch went into the sport with the wind of their sails having gained all of their pool matches, together with a 3-0 victory over the Chinese language, earlier than seeing off Nice Britain within the quarter-finals and Argentina within the semis.
The defending champions seemed odds-on favourites to take that type all the best way to the rostrum.
Nevertheless it was the Chinese language who opened the scoring within the seventh minute with their solely vital assault of the primary half, Chen poking the ball past Veenendaal to silence the gang which, as has turn out to be traditional with Netherlands video games, was predominantly clad in orange.
Dutch frustration
The Asian champions have blossomed underneath Annan’s steering however they solely had three photographs on aim throughout your complete match, defending bravely because the Dutch got here at them.
The equaliser lastly got here 9 minutes from time when Jansen powered residence a penalty nook, her ninth aim of the match.
The Dutch continued to press however needed to be happy with victory within the shootout.
It was heartache for the Chinese language to get so near their first hockey gold however Annan, who’s in negotiation with the Chinese language over a contract extension, remained optimistic when in search of the following milestone.
“Gold in LA,” she advised reporters. “We will solely lookup. We have carried out extraordinarily properly, we have now to lookup and above. We’ve to maintain pursuing a better place on the rostrum.”
Earlier on Friday, Argentina claimed their third Olympics bronze medal, their sixth medal in girls’s hockey, additionally with a 3-1 shootout win over Belgium after their third-place play-off resulted in a 2-2 draw.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV workers and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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