FIH Olympic Qualification tournaments for hockey: Women’s preview, schedule and how to watch
Find out everything you need to know about the upcoming Olympic qualifiers in Ranchi, India and Valencia, Spain below.
Olympic Games Paris 2024 may be seven months away but for 16 hockey nations, the women's FIH Olympic Qualification tournaments could define the rest of their year.
Two qualifiers are set to take place in Ranchi, India and Valencia, Spain, with the podium finishers in each of the tournaments earning a quota for Paris 2024.
As host nation, France are sure of a place in Paris, while Netherlands, Australia, Argentina and People's Republic of China have all sealed their place in Paris courtesy of their respective continental qualifiers.
Now the rest of the field is set to be defined, as many of the world's top women's teams go head to head with one goal in mind - the chance to fight for gold in the capital of France.
When and where will the women’s FIH Olympic Qualification tournaments for hockey take place?
The first qualification tournament will take place in Ranchi, India from 13-19 January, while the second will be hosted in Valencia in Spain from 13-20 January.
What is the format of the women’s hockey Olympic qualifiers?
For each tournament, the competing nations will be split into two pools as follows:
Valencia women’s pool A:
Belgium, Ireland, Republic of Korea, Ukraine
Valencia women’s pool B:
Canada, Great Britain, Malaysia, Spain
Ranchi women’s pool A:
Chile, Czechia, Germany, Japan
Ranchi women’s pool B:
India, Italy, New Zealand, United States
From there, the top two teams from the pool stage will reach the semi-finals with the finals and third place matches in each pool deciding the top three teams that will receive an Olympic quota.
Nations to watch in the women's FIH Olympic Qualification tournaments
In Valencia Pool A, Belgium are the top-ranked team competing with a current position of fourth in the world ranking. They will be joined by 12th and 13th-ranked Republic of Korea and Ireland, while Ukraine enter the tournament as underdogs with a world ranking of 28.
Belgium have shown strong consistency in recent years, with consecutive 4th place finishes in the FIH Pro League and second place in the 2023 EuroHockey Nations Championship. They will be real favourites to progress to the knockout stages or even win the Olympic Qualification tournaments.
Pool B sees traditional powerhouses Great Britain and Spain installed as favourites with the Brits having won Olympic gold at Rio 2016. However, both teams will have to be at their best to fend off the challenges of two nations that are in the top 20 in the world, Canada (16) and Malaysia (18).
In Ranchi Pool A, the outright favourites to progress will be Germany - the reigning European bronze medallists who were also Olympic bronze medallists in 2016. They currently sit sixth in the world rankings.
India enjoy home advantage in Ranchi Pool B and their ranking of 6th in world shows what a formidable opponent they will be. Their recent list of accolades includes gold in the 2022 FIH Nations Cup, bronze in the 2022 Asia Cup and bronze at the 2022 Asian Games, as well as a semi-final appearance at Tokyo 2020.
FIH Olympic Qualification women’s tournaments schedule
Ranchi Pool A
13 January
12:00: Germany vs Chile
14:30: Japan vs Czechia
14 January
12:00: Chile vs Czechia
14:30: Japan vs Germany
16 January
12:00: Germany vs Czechia
14:30: Chile vs Japan
Ranchi Pool B
13 January
17:00: New Zealand vs Italy
19:30: India vs USA
14 January
17:00: USA vs Italy
19:30: New Zealand vs India
16 January
17:00: USA vs New Zealand
19:30: India vs Italy
Crossover
18 January
10:30: C1: 3rd Pool A vs 4th Pool B
13:30: C2: 3rd Pool B vs 4th Pool A
Seventh and eight place match
19 January
10:30: Loser C1 vs loser C2
Fifth and sixth place match
19 January
Winner C1 vs winner C2
Semi-final 1:
18 January:
16:30: 1st Pool A vs 2nd Pool B
19:30: 1st Pool B vs 2nd Pool A
Third and fourth place match
19 January
16:30: Loser semi-final 1 vs loser semi-final 2
Final
19 January 2024
Winner semi-final 1 vs winner semi-final 2
Valencia Pool A
13 January
18:30: Belgium vs Ireland
20:45: Republic of Korea vs Ukraine
15 January
12:00: Ireland vs Ukraine
14:15: Republic of Korea vs Belgium
16 January
17:00: Belgium vs Ukraine
19:15: Ireland vs Republic of Korea
Valencia Pool B
13 January
9:30: Great Britain vs Canada
11:45: Spain vs Malaysia
14 January
9:30: Canada vs Malaysia
14:45: Spain vs Great Britain
16 January
12:00: Canada vs Spain
14:15: Great Britain vs Malaysia
Crossover
18 January
10:00: C1: 3rd Pool a vs 4th Pool B
18:00: C2: 3rd Pool B vs 4th Pool A
Seventh and eighth place match
20 January
10:00: Loser C1 vs loser C2
Fifth and sixth place match
Winner C1 vs winner C2
Semi-final 1
12:30: 1st Pool A vs 2nd Pool B
15:30: 1st Pool B vs 2nd Pool A
Third and fourth place match
20 January
15:30: Loser semi-final 1 vs loser semi-final 2
Final
20 January
18:00: Winner semi-final 1 vs winner semi-final 2
How to watch the women’s FIH Olympic Qualification tournaments for hockey
Every one of the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier matches will be streamed live on Watch.Hockey.
For a more detailed list of broadcasters visit the official International Hockey Federation website.