Field hockey

Origin

Hockey is believed to date from the earliest civilizations. The Arabs, Greeks, Persians, and Romans each had their own versions, and traces of a stick game played by the Aztecs of Mesoamerica have been found. Hockey can also be identified with other early games, such as hurling and shinty. During the Middle Ages a French stick game called hoquet was played, and the English word may be derived from it.

Hockey began to be played in English schools in the late 19th century, and the first men’s hockey club, at Blackheath in southeastern London, recorded a minute book in 1861. Teddington, another London club, introduced several major variations, including the ban of using hands or lifting sticks above the shoulder, the replacement of the rubber cube by a sphere as the ball, and most importantly, the adoption of a striking circle, which was incorporated into the rules of the newly founded Hockey Association in London in 1886.

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American Sports Nicknames

The Fédération Internationale de Hockey sur Gazon (FIH; English: “International Federation of Hockey”), the governing body for the men’s sport, was formed in 1924 in Paris. The International Federation of Women’s Hockey Associations (IFWHA) was created in 1927 to manage the women’s game. The two bodies merged under the FIH’s umbrella in 1982.

Modern era and Olympic hockey

The British army was largely responsible for spreading the game, particularly in India and the Far East. International competition began in 1895. Men’s field hockey was included in the Olympic Games in 1908 and 1920 and then permanently from 1928, by which time it had become India’s national game. That year the Indian team made its Olympic debut and won the gold medal without conceding a goal in five matches. It was the start of India’s domination of the sport, with the team winning eight gold medals, including a streak of six consecutive Olympic titles from 1928 to 1956. The neighboring country of Pakistan emerged as a rival, defeating India in the final to win gold at the 1960 Summer Olympic Games. Women’s field hockey was added to the Olympic roster from the 1980 Games onward. Indoor hockey, a variant of the sport played by teams of six players with six interchanging substitutes, has become popular in Europe.

The results of the men’s and women’s Olympic field hockey events are listed in the tables below.

Field, scoring, and equipment

The game is played by two teams of up to 11 players on a rectangular ground 91.4 meters (100 yards) long and 55 meters (60 yards) wide. The field is marked with a center line, two lines 23 meters (25 yards) from the middle of the field (22.90 meters from each back line), and a semicircle with a radius of 14.63 meters (16 yards), known as the shooting circle, or “D,” around the goal at each end of the hockey pitch. The goals are 3.66 meters (12 feet) wide and 2.14 meters (7 feet) high. For a goal (which counts for one point) to be scored, the ball must be touched by the stick of an attacker while it is within the shooting circle and then go into the goal.

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The ball was originally a cricket ball (cork center, string-wound, and covered with leather), but the modern game uses plastic or synthetic balls (often dimpled for artificial turf surfaces), weighing between 156 and 163 grams (5.5–5.7 ounces) with a circumference of 22.4–23.5 cm (8.8–9.3 inches). The stick must be less than 1.05 meters (1.15 yards) long and weigh no more than 737 grams (about 26 ounces). Only the flat left side of the stick may be used to strike the ball.

Formations, formats, and teams

Modern hockey teams comprise dynamic tactical formations, with players switching roles and maneuvering freely around the pitch. Unlimited rolling substitutions are allowed from a declared squad of 16 to 18 players during a match. Teams may choose to field a fully equipped goalkeeper or play exclusively with 11 outfield players. Matches consist of four 15-minute quarters (60 minutes total), with 2-minute intervals between the first and second quarters and the third and fourth quarters, and a 10-minute stoppage between the second and third quarters, which is also known as the halftime break.

Time is stopped at the umpire’s discretion, usually when a goal is scored, in case of injuries, or when a penalty corner or penalty stroke is awarded. The goalkeeper wears thick, yet lightweight pads and, while in the shooting circle, is allowed to kick the ball or stop it with the foot or the body. All other players, however, may stop the ball with the stick only. If a player’s foot or body blocks the ball, a free hit or a penalty corner is awarded to the opposing team, depending on whether the offense occurred outside or inside the shooting circle, respectively.

Restarts and gameplay

Play is started (and restarted after a goal is scored and in every quarter) with a pass from the center of the field that can be played in any direction. Under the self-pass rule, formally confirmed in 2011, players taking free hits, sideline restarts, or center passes may immediately dribble with the ball without needing to pass to a teammate first. A face-off, or bully, is used to restart the game only after unpenalized stoppages (such as an injury or a ball deflecting off an umpire). In a face-off two players, one from each team, face each other with the ball on the ground between them and tap the flat faces of their sticks together once before each player tries to strike the ball, thus putting it into play. There are various provisions for putting the ball into play in case it goes off the field.

Fouls and officiating

There are various fouls in field hockey. The offside rule, which is designed to prevent a player from getting an advantage by staying up the field ahead of the ball and ahead of fewer than two members of the opposing team, was dropped after the 1996 Olympics. The rule preventing a player from raising the stick above the shoulder while playing the ball was scrapped in the 2000s. From 2015 onward players were permitted to play, stop, or deflect the ball above shoulder height with the stick anywhere on the pitch, provided it was done safely. When receiving an aerial ball, opposing team players must stay at least five meters away from the player receiving the pass but may challenge once the ball is touched by the latter. Stopping the ball with the hand is a foul, as is stopping it with the body or foot. Causing dangerous play by undercutting the ball (intentionally hitting it into the air outside of shots at goal), as well as hooking an opponent’s stick or leg, are also fouls.

Finally, there is the obstruction rule: A player is not permitted to obstruct an opponent by putting the stick or any part of the body between the opponent and the ball or by running between them. Most fouls are penalized by giving the opposition a free hit from the point of infraction. Officials can issue disciplinary cards to penalize players, which include a green card (signalling a two-minute suspension), a yellow card (indicating a minimum five-minute suspension), and a red card (permanent ejection from the game). The team that has been shown a card cannot replace the suspended or ejected player. There is one umpire for each half of the field.