On the final day of the women’s competition in Nanjing, the Chinese hosts claimed the gold medal in dramatic fashion.
Three goals in the first period plus one more in the 16th minute gave China a four goal lead by the middle of the match. The Dutch women were far from defeated however, and revolted in impressive manner against their seemingly impending demise, sinking five goals in eight minutes. China suddenly found themselves on the backfoot, but driven by the electric atmosphere in the stadium, the home team forced the match into a shoot-out with a late equalizer.
In the shoot-out, Liu Kailin denied Carmen Wijsman, and China’s topscorer Zhang Jinrong made good use of the opportunity to seize the win, sinking the decisive ball.
Previously, Argentina had left Japan without a chance in the bronze medal match, with the women’s topscorer Julieta Jankunas adding a hattrick to her impressive tally for a total of 19 goals in the event.
The match for 5th place saw a breathtaking battle between Uruguay and New Zealand that oscillated back and forth with the Kiwis eventually a step ahead when the final whistle sounded.
An easy victory over South Africa secured 7th place for Germany.
Results
Women
7/8th place: Germany – South Africa 6:1 (2:1; 5:1)
5/6th place: Uruguay – New Zealand 4:5 (1:1; 1:2)
3rd/4th place: Argentina – Japan 5:2 (0:0; 3:0)
Final: Netherlands – China 5:5 (0:3; 2:4) – Challenge Shoot-out: 2:3
Final Ranking
Women
1. China
2. Netherlands
3. Argentina
4. Japan
5. New Zealand
6. Uruguay
7. Germany
8. South Africa
9. Zambia
10. Fiji
You can keep up to speed on all of the action from the 2014 Youth Olympic Games on the official event website - www.nanjing2014.org, with hockey specific info available by clicking here. To learn more about the Youth Olympic Games, click here.
