It appears that Graham Reid’s successor as head coach of the Indian men’s team has been narrowed down by Hockey India (HI) in some way. Craig Fulton, a South African, has emerged as the Australian’s likely replacement after helping India win its first Olympic medal in 41 years.
Fulton appears likely to accept the position, according to an official in the Indian hockey setup who spoke on the record.
With the Olympic champions Belgium, who also placed second at the World Cup in Odisha in January, Fulton is currently an assistant coach.
Because most of the top coaches, unlike Fulton, are under contract with their teams through the 2024 Paris Olympics, Fulton became a likely candidate for the India position. “I’m not sure if he’s going, but I understand the circumstances. He was under contract from the 2018 World Cup to the 2023 World Cup, which is likely why he was a non-contentious choice contractually, according to a representative of the Belgium hockey setup.
Fulton also serves as a coach for Belgian team KHC Dragons. Last year, he led Racing to the Belgian Hockey League championship. It is possible that he will leave before the league concludes on May 15, according to the Belgian official.
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The 48-year-old former international participated in the 1996 and 2004 Olympics, the 2002 World Cup, and 191 matches for South Africa between 1996 and 2005.
Fulton became the head coach of Ireland in 2014 after coaching stints at various clubs in England, Ireland, and South Africa. In addition to helping Ireland qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics, which will be their first since the 1908 London Olympics, and the 2018 World Cup, he led Ireland to bronze at the 2015 EuroHockey Championship. In addition, he received the 2015 FIH Men’s Coach of the Year award.
After spending four years with Ireland, Fulton joined Shane McLeod’s coaching staff in Belgium, where he later assisted them in winning the World Cup in Bhubaneswar. He also competed for Belgium in the team that captured the Tokyo Olympics gold and the 2023 World Cup silver in Odisha.
Grant, the brother of Fulton, and Natalie, his wife, were both South African internationals.
Interim coaches David John and BJ Kariappa joined the India camp in Bengaluru and began working with the team on Wednesday. According to information obtained, Reid’s one-month notice period ended on Tuesday. Reid resigned following India’s underwhelming performance at the World Cup in January, when the hosts finished tied for ninth, the worst performance by a host nation.
An India player remarked, “He did not attend practise the last two days but informed us that his return ticket was confirmed and he would be departing in a few days.
The team will train in Bengaluru until March 6 before moving on to Rourkela, where they will compete in Pro League games from March 10 to 15 against the newly crowned world champions Germany and the silver medalists from the Tokyo Olympics, Australia.
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