KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 19 — The 29th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament in Ipoh this April will be the last battle ground for three world leading squads — Australia, Canada and Japan — to test the tactical and strategic effectiveness of their respective coaches for the coming 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games in July.
Apart from the three Olympic sides, the championship at Azlan Shah Stadium, Ipoh from April 11 to 18 will also be participated by hosts, Malaysia, South Korea and Pakistan.
Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC) president Datuk Seri Subahan Kamal said two more Olympic teams invited namely India and New Zealand would not be joining following their tight training schedule for the Olympics.
India, New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, Holland, Great Britain, Belgium, Spain and Germany would be competing in the FIH Professional League (FIH Pro League) from January to June.
According to current world rankings, Malaysia are in the 11th rung with Australia (2), Canada (10), Japan (15), South Korea (16) and Pakistan (17).
Despite failing to qualify for Tokyo Olympic Games, the national squad under Roelant Oltmans has been given the target of qualifying for the final, said Subahan at a media conference here today.
According to him, the target is realistic based on world rankings where Malaysia are among the top three teams in the tournament.
“The championship is a good platform to show other teams that Malaysia are still a force to be reckoned with after failing to be in the Olympics,” he said.
He said Oltmans would be announcing the team followed by centralised training on Monday. — Bernama
