Ireland women’s hockey captain Katie Mullan feels qualifying for the upcoming Paris 2024 Games will be “crucial” if the club is to maintain the momentum it has gained over the past few years.
Sean Dancer’s team will take part in the final stage of qualifying this month in Valencia, Spain, where they will be drawn into a pool with Belgium, South Korea and Ukraine, with their first match against Belgium on Saturday, January 13th.
To qualify for the Olympics, Ireland must finish in the top two in their pool, reach the semi-finals, advance to the final or win the third-fourth place match.
But Mullan, who was part of the Ireland squad that reached the 2018 World Cup final and qualified for their first Olympic Games at the postponed Tokyo Games, believes Paris is the next logical step for this group of players.
“After the 2018 World Cup we quickly qualified for Tokyo. This is the next big step for the Irish women’s hockey team and with the new players coming in we have a solid foundation. We are still at the top and we are fighting hard with the aim of being in the top 10 in the world, playing in professional leagues and competing for medals in major competitions. ‘, the 29-year-old told RTÉ Sport’s Claire McNamara.
“And the next step of qualifying for Paris is crucial to that. So we’re excited and we’re ready.”
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It will be a tough challenge to make it through the qualifying tournament, but Mulan is confident that the experience accumulated by the team’s core players and the sprinkling of new talent will give the team an advantage and earn them a spot in the final tournament. I’m sure it will. back-to-back Olympics.
“Pressure is a privilege and we have the experience of getting through the Olympic qualifiers and going to the Olympics like we did last time, so we know what everything looks like and half the team has that experience. with the other half and then we have some lads who are full of life, very excited and a breath of fresh air, so we have a really great combination within the team and we are very excited about the tournament. I am perfectly prepared for this,” Moulin said.
The team departs for Spain on Saturday, and the Christmas and New Year period is a busy period for the 18-player squad given the pressing challenge of Olympic qualification, but considering the possibilities Moulin and others wouldn’t want it any other way. Prizes will be offered.
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The native of Coleraine, Co. Derry, said: “I’ve had a great preparation. I was away for two weeks before Christmas, came home and spent about 48 hours with my family, and then I’ve been here training again.”
“We’ve prepared really well and the excitement is building nicely for the tournament, so we’re looking forward to getting on the plane this weekend.”