Tokyo Olympics Was The Last Assignment, Said By Coach Sjoerd Marijne
Sjoerd Marijne, the main coach of the Indian women's hockey team, stated on Friday that the bronze medal match against Great Britain in the current Olympics was his final assignment with the squad. The 47-year-old led India's women's hockey team to their best-ever Olympic performance, bringing them to a respectable fourth place finish. The Indian ladies came agonisingly near to earning their first Olympic medal before losing 3-4 in a tight bronze play-off match to Great Britain.
Marijne revealed hours later that this was his final assignment with the Indian squad. "Because this was my last match with Indian ladies, I don't have any intentions. Now it's up to Janneka (Schopman) to do the job "In a virtual news conference, the Dutchman informed the Indian media.
The Sports Authority of India (SAI) offered both Marijne and the team's analytical coach Janneka Schopman an extension, but the former turned it down owing to personal reasons. Schopman is likely to take up Marine's role on a full-time basis immediately, according to sources familiar with the situation. Marijne, a former Dutch player, originally took over as coach of the Indian women's squad in 2017, before moving on to the men's team later that year.
In a reshuffle of positions in 2018, he was re-designated as the women's coach. Marijne represented the Netherlands at the World Cup and led the Dutch Under-21 women's team to victory. In 2015, he also led the Dutch senior women's team to gold medal in the Hockey World League Semi-Finals.
Due to COVID-19-related travel limitations, the amiable Dutchman has been unable to see his family for the past 16 months, and this might well be a key factor in his decision to leave India.
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