Eight-times gold medallists India missed out on the Olympic Games men's hockey event for the first time when they lost 2-0 to Britain in the final of a qualifying tournament in Santiago on Sunday.
This was the first time that India had failed to make it to the Olympics [Images] since their debut in 1928. India had missed out on an automatic berth after they failed to reach the 2006 Asian Games final.
India's last Olympics gold came in 1980, but since then it has been a steady decline for the sport in the country.
Chief hockey coach Joaquim Carvalho has also decided to step down along with his support staff following the team's failure to qualify for the 2008 Beijing [Images] Olympics.
China, Netherlands, South Korea, Canada [Images], South Africa, Spain, Belarus, Pakistan and Australia qualified directly for the Beijing Games.
What do you think has been the problem with Indian hockey in recent years? And will Indian hockey ever be able to regain lost glory? Tell us!
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