Faced by 'go home, be mothers' taunts, India women's ice hockey team wins historic bronze at 2025 Asia Cup
Women's Ice Hockey Team
The Indian Women's Ice Hockey Team secured their first-ever bronze medal at the 2025 IIHF Women's Asia Cup held in Al-Ain, United Arab Emirates from May 31 to June 6. The 20-member squad, comprising 10 players from
Indo-Tibetan Border Police
(ITBP), 9 from Leh, and 1 from Himachal Pradesh, competed against five other nations, winning three matches and losing two to claim the third position.
The team's journey began in the mountainous regions of Ladakh and Spiti Valley, where women players practiced on frozen ponds during winter. Initially, they faced numerous challenges including lack of proper equipment and training facilities.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel.
SUBSCRIBE NOW!
In the early stages, the women players received limited access to training facilities, only getting rink time after male players finished their sessions. They had to use borrowed men's gear that was oversized and mismatched.
"Go home, be mothers" and "Try dancing instead" were some of the remarks these players encountered during their journey. Despite these challenges, they persevered by creating their own rink and continued their pursuit of the sport.
'Nitish Kumar is a guy who can bowl that magic ball': India bowling coach Morne Morkel
The Ladakh Women's Ice Hockey Foundation (LWIFH) was established to support and develop women's ice hockey in the region. Over the past decade, the foundation has made significant progress in training players and promoting the sport.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Düsseldorf: GEERS sucht 700 Testhörer für Hörgeräte ohne Zuzahlung
GEERS
Undo
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) acknowledged the achievement stating: "They made us proud! Indian Women's Ice Hockey Team clinched Bronze at the
Asia Cup
2025 in UAE! The 20-member squad included 10 #Himveers from #ITBP, 9 players from Leh, and 1 from HP. 6 international teams competed."
The team's success story includes notable figures like Rinchen Dolma, India's first captain, who returned to the sport five months after giving birth, bringing her daughter to practice sessions despite facing comments about being "old" or "too bold."
The bronze medal marks a significant milestone for Indian women's ice hockey, coming nearly a decade after the country made its international debut at the IIHF Women's Challenge Cup of Asia Division I in 2016.
Quiz:
Who's that IPL player?
The foundation has now started receiving government support, enabling the team to achieve new milestones. Their work extends beyond competition, as they now train children in remote villages, contributing to the sport's development at the grassroots level.
The bronze medal victory has generated widespread recognition across India, with congratulatory messages pouring in from various quarters, acknowledging the team's determination and success in breaking barriers in this traditionally male-dominated sport.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
11 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
‘I don't think the wickets are going to as spicy as…': Morne Morkel analyses India's preparation for England Tests
A new generation will take over the mantle as India face England in a five-match Test series, starting from June 20. The first Test will be take place in Leeds and India last a Test match in January at the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, and since then the players have only been featuring in white-ball cricket. Speaking ahead of India senior team's intra-squad match vs India A, bowling coach Morne Morkel analysed the pitches in the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy, and felt that they would be helpful for bowlers. 'The two day practice so far, the conditions suited the fast bowlers. Early on in the tour it was very exciting, it gets their confidence going. It was testing for the batters, which also in a way helps them to prepare for what's to come,'he said, in a video posted by BCCI. He added, 'I don't think the wickets are going to be as spicy as the ones we experienced here. There's been a lot of good banter between bat and ball, but I think it's only because the wickets are a little bit spicy. As soon as the wickets go flat, the bowlers tend to back off.' 'I'm going to tell them not to only talk when the wickets are nipping around, but when it's flat, that's where we're going to need the character. Now it's just slowly building towards that first test match. For me, the main thing, and I think it's crucial in England, is consistency.' Putting importance on consistency, he said, 'That is consistency when we practice, it's consistency off the field, finding your process, what's going to work for you as an individual. We've got a great variation variety in our attack of guys with different skill sets. So, you know, can they do that and still execute the basics very well. All in all, I'm very happy with the start so far.' This is India's first red-ball assignement since the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which they lost 1-3.
India.com
13 minutes ago
- India.com
Nita Ambani's MI team sign star player, he has average as high as Bradman, son of top Bollywood director, his name is…
Image credit: X (Formerly Twitter) In these collection of pictures, we find out about the star India player signed up by Nita Ambani's MI team who has average close to Sir Donald Bradman. Image credit: X (Formerly Twitter) Nita Ambani's MI New York won the MLC title in 2023, in the first-ever season in the T20 league in the United States. Image credit: X (Formerly Twitter) Nita Ambani's MI New York will be led by Nicholas Pooran in MLC 2025. The third season of the T20 league got underway on Friday. Image credit: X (Formerly Twitter) MI New York have signed up star players like Naveen-ul-Haq of Afghanistan, Michael Bracewell of New Zealand apart from Nicholas Pooran. Image credit: X (Formerly Twitter) Nita Ambani's MI New York have signed up star Indian cricket Agni Dev Chopra. He has scored 9 hundreds in just 11 first-class matches. Image credit: X (Formerly Twitter) Agni Chopra has an average close to Sir Donald Bradman in first-class cricket. Playing for Mizoram in Ranji Trophy, Agni Chopra has an average of 94.94. Image credit: X (Formerly Twitter) Agni Chopra is son of famous Bollywood producer and director Vidhu Vinod Chopra. His mother is famous film critic Anupama Chopra. Image credit: Source: Instagram Agni Chopra will be hoping to make debut in T20 league this season with the MI New York team.
Hindustan Times
13 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
India look to bounce back against formidable Australia in FIH Pro League
Antwerp, Low on confidence after four successive defeats, a struggling India will be desperate to arrest the slide and stay in contention for the top prize when they take on a formidable Australia in the men's FIH Pro League on Saturday. The European leg of the tournament has been disappointing for the Indian men's hockey team, which suffered 1-2 and 2-3 losses to Olympic champions Netherlands in Amstelveen, followed by back-to-back defeats against Argentina. Ranked fifth with 15 points from 12 games, India need to bounce back strongly against Australia to collect crucial points and remain in the race for a top-three finish. "A win against Australia will be very critical for us, as it will not only help us gain crucial points but also give the team a winning momentum," said captain Harmanpreet Singh, who had missed the last match due to a finger injury, in a release. "We've had a few close games in the last four matches, and while we have been on the losing end, we want to change that and get some wins under our belts." While poor penalty-corner conversions and the recurring issue of conceding late goals cost them dearly against the Netherlands, it was sloppy defending that led to a 3-4 defeat to Argentina in the first game. In the second, a potential equaliser from a late penalty was disallowed as India went down 1-2. India also struggled to earn penalty corners, managing only three compared to Argentina's eight. Up against a strong Australian side, India can ill afford any more slip-ups and will have to play out of their skins to turn their fortunes around. Currently ranked world number 7, India will look to draw confidence from their win over former world number one Australia during the Paris Olympics Pool stage. India will conclude their European leg with two matches against Belgium on June 21 and 22.
