The Canadian National Team’s Olympic Program for 2012 has come to a close as the Men’s and Women’s National Teams were unable to capitalize on their final opportunity to qualify for London. Both teams were disappointed with their final standings at the FIH Road to London in Delhi last month, each finishing one spot below their tournament ranking. Team Canada walks away having gained valuable experiences in the process with a number of young players.
“As a result of our performance, not just at the Olympic Qualifiers but at all events throughout 2011, we are taking a close look at all aspects of our national team program and the related adjustments that need to be considered,” says Alan Brahmst, Director of National Teams and High Performance. “We have a clear and detailed long-term strategy in place, which we have been implementing since the summer of 2011. We’ve just begun to put the necessary building blocks in place to optimize performance in 40 months at the next major milestone, the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto. Our objective is to win double gold at home and automatically qualify for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.”
Field Hockey Canada’s high performance plan and program for the next four years has already been drafted with competition programming in place and extensive physiology and training under development.
“Essentially, we will be running four fully integrated plans with junior and senior programs for men and women,” says Brahmst. “We will be developing an innovative style of play and assembling the right people and athletes to ensure success in 2015.
Canada’s programs will now have an immediate focus on the junior squads who will be competing at the Junior World Cup Qualification Tournament in Mexico, where the top three women’s and top two men’s teams from the Pan Americas will qualify for the 2013 Junior World Cup. The Junior World Cup represents an important stage for athletes within Field Hockey Canada’s Talent Development Program.
