As part of our build-up to the FIH Hockey Women’s Junior World Cup Chile 2023, we bring you the third of four Pool previews which examines the qualification routes, past form and crucial players from the teams that will compete at the showpiece event in Santiago, Chile.
Belgium, Canada, Germany and India all feature in Pool C, with a top two finish being the only way to secure a place in the competition quarter-finals and thus maintain hopes of Junior World Cup glory.
Belgium
FIH Junior World Ranking: 11
How they qualified: 2nd Place – EuroHockey Junior Championship 2022
Junior World Cup history: 2016 – 6th, 2013 – 13th.
About the team: Belgium booked their ticket to Santiago 2023 with a series of superb performances at last year’s EuroHockey Junior Championship on home soil in Ghent. The Young Red Panthers started the competition by holding reigning junior world champions the Netherlands to a 1-1 draw before defeating Wales, Spain and England to reach the gold medal game, with Germany – who also feature in Pool C – edging out the hosts in a heart-breaking shoot-out. The team selected by head coach Darran Bisley is expected to be just as competitive in Santiago, especially with the inclusion of France de Mot, who was part of the Red Panthers team that finished sixth at the FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup Spain & Netherlands 2022, Having made the difficult decision to withdraw from the previous, rescheduled edition, Belgium’s rising stars will feel that a place on the podium in Santiago is well within their capabilities.
Canada
FIH Junior World Ranking: 18
How they qualified: 4th Place – Junior Pan American Championship 2023
Junior World Cup history: 2022 – 15th, 2013 – 14th, 2005 – 15th, 2001 – 13th, 1997 – 11th, 1993 – 8th, 1989 – 7th
About the team: Canada secured their berth at Santiago 2023 with a fourth-place finish at the Junior Pan American Championships, which were played in April 2023 in Barbados. They claimed convincing pool victories over Guyana (12-0) and hosts Barbados (11-0) either side of a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Chile. A painful 1-0 semi-final loss to Argentina denied them a place in the competition final before Chile beat the Canadians for a second time, running out 5-1 winners in the bronze medal match. Attacking stars Mallory Mackesy and team captain Allison Kuzyk scored six times apiece for Canada in Barbados, with both players being selected for Santiago 2023. Despite being the lowest ranked team in a tough looking pool, the 2021 Junior Pan American champions will be determined to remind everyone of their qualities during what will be their eighth Women’s Junior World Cup campaign.
Germany
FIH Junior World Ranking: 3
How they qualified: 2nd place – FIH Hockey Junior World Cup South Africa 2022
Junior World Cup history: 2022 – 2nd, 2016 – 5th, 2013 – 10th, 2009 – 6th, 2005 – 2nd, 2001 – 7th, 1997 – 4th, 1993 – 3rd, 1989 – 1st
About the team: The performances of Germany’s junior women over the past two years have been eye-catching. They claimed an impressive silver medal at the FIH Hockey Junior World Cup South Africa 2022, falling only at the final hurdle against the Netherlands (3-1) after beating Malaysia (10-0), Wales (2-1), Argentina (4-1) and England 8-0). Germany continued their excellent form at the EuroHockey Junior Championship 2022 in Ghent, Belgium later in the year, beating Scotland (6-0), England (2-1) and Ireland (7-0) in the pool phase before battling to shoot-out wins over semi-final opponents the Netherlands (1-1, 3-2 SO) and Belgium (1-1, 4-3 SO) in the gold medal game. Head coach Akim Bouchouchi is the mastermind behind Germany’s recent successes, and his team should feel confident about their chances of success at Santiago 2023. The team is captained by Lilly Stoffelsma, who scored five times in Germany’s title-winning run at the EuroHockey Junior Championship 2022. Carolin Seidel is another player to keep an eye on, having netted three goals to help Germany win a four nations competition in August that featured India, Spain, and England.
India
FIH Junior World Ranking: 6
How they qualified: 4th place – FIH Hockey Junior World Cup South Africa 2022
Junior World Cup history: 2022 – 4th, 2013 – 3rd, 2009 – 9th, 2005 – 11th, 2001 – 9th
About the team: India take part in their sixth FIH Women’s Junior Hockey World Cup, having participated at Buenos Aires 2001, Santiago 2005, Boston 2009, Mönchengladbach 2013 and Potchefstroom 2022, where they finished fourth. Their bronze medal at the 2013 competition is the team’s best women’s Junior World Cup finish, an achievement they will be determined to surpass at Santiago 2023. They arrive in Chile as the junior continental champions of Asia, having claimed the Women’s Junior Asia Cup in Kakamigahara, Japan earlier this year. Many of that title winning team have been selected for Santiago 2023, including captain Preeti as well as goalscoring duo Annu and Mumtaz Khan, who scored a combined total of 15 goals in Japan. The squad also contains two fifteen-year-olds in Sunelita Toppo – a scorer of five goals in Kakamigahara – and Sakshi Rana. The team is coached by Tushar Khandker, who represented India at the men’s World Cups of 2006 and 2010 as well at the Olympic Games London 2012.
The FIH Hockey Women’s Junior World Cup Chile 2023 begins on 29 November with 12 teams in action on opening day! Pool B encounter between Korea and Zimbabwe will get the event underway at 10am local time. High octane clashes between Netherlands and Australia, India and Canada, Argentina and Spain, Germany and Belgium will follow, before hosts Chile play the final match of the opening day against South Africa. The full match schedule for the FIH Hockey Women’s Junior World Cup can be found here.
Don’t miss a moment of the action from the FIH Hockey Women’s Junior World Cup Chile 2023, using either of the two options available on Watch.Hockey:
- the FIH+ Pass, which enables access to all FIH events! Important: the Early Bird discount of up to 25% for the FIH+ Pass has been extended to 29 November!
- the Event Pass, which includes the matches of the FIH Hockey Women's Junior World Cup Chile 2023 only.
Passes can be purchased worldwide* directly through the Watch.Hockey app (App Store and Google Play).
*except on the Indian subcontinent
