Can the Hockeyroos wind the clock back to their glory years, or will there be more heartbreak for Aussie hockey fans at this year’s Olympics?
Find out as we present everything you need to know about the 2024 Olympic campaign for Australia’s women’s hockey team, including the fixtures, the squad, and who the favourites are to win gold in Paris.
What are the Hockeyroos fixtures at the Paris Olympics?
All times below are AEST.
| Time | Teams |
| Sunday July 28, 8:45pm | Australia vs South Africa |
| Tuesday July 30, 1am | Great Britain vs Australia |
| Wednesday July 31, 9:15pm | Australia vs USA |
| Friday August 2, 4:15am | Argentina vs Australia |
| Saturday August 3, 8:45pm | Australia vs Spain |
The 12 nations that qualified for the Paris Games will be split into two groups of six, with the top four from each group progressing to the quarter-finals.
For the full fixture, check out our comprehensive list of the scheduled events at the Paris Olympics.
Who is in the Hockeyroos squad for the Paris Olympics?
The Hockeryoos squad for the 2024 Olympics was announced on July 1 and was most notable for who it did not include – namely, star striker Rosie Malone. But more on that later.
For now we’ll focus on the names that coach Katrina Powell did include in the squad. The co-captains are Jane Claxton, Grace Stewart, Kaitlin Nobbs and Brooke Peris, the latter being the cousin of former Olympian and parliamentarian Nova Peris.
The selection panel also included a handful of promising youngsters including Claire Colwill, Grace Young and Tatum Stewart.
Hockeyroos squad for the Paris Olympics (pending Rosie Malone’s appeal): Alice Arnott, Jocelyn Bartram, Jane Claxton, Claire Colwill, Rebecca Greiner, Stephanie Kershaw, Amy Lawton, Kaitlin Nobbs, Brooke Peris, Karri Somerville, Penny Squibb, Grace Stewart, Tatum Stewart, Renee Tatlor, Mariah Williams, Grace Young
What happened to Rosie Malone?
Australian hockey Twitter went into meltdown late in June when it was reported Rosie Malone would be omitted from the Olympic squad, due to be announced a few days later. The reports were accurate – when the squad was unveiled on July 1, Malone’s name was not on the list.
Malone has turned out for the Hockeyroos more than 100 times, including several games this year, and is one of the few strikers in the national squad not to have been impacted by injury in the past few months.
Most remarkably, the 26-year-old was one of five players on the shortlist for the International Hockey Federation’s player of the year award barely six months ago – the first Australian to be shortlisted for that award in almost a decade.
But there is a twist. Malone is appealing the decision to leave her out, leaving her fate in the hands of the fine folk at the National Sports Tribunal. It could make for a very awkward team camp if Malone does end up being included.
The Hockeyroos will take on Argentina in Paris, just as they did in Tokyo. (Photo by Getty Images)
Has Australia ever won an Olympic gold medal in women’s hockey?
Australia has won three gold medals in women’s hockey, but the most recent of those wins came 24 years ago at the Sydney 2000 Games.
Australia claimed their first hockey gold at the Seoul Olympics in 1988, defeating the host nation 2-0 in the final. The Hockeyroos also won the rematch with Korea at Atlanta 1996, before claiming Australia’s final gold medal of the Sydney Games with a 3-1 win over Argentina.
The Hockeyroos’ current coach, Katrina Powell, was the team’s star player on their run to gold in 1996 and 2000.
Will the Hockeyroos win gold at the Paris Olympics?
The Aussie women definitely have a chance of winning a medal in Paris, but it would be a big surprise if they were able to break their gold medal drought.
The Hockeyroos claimed third place at the 2022 World Cup, and are currently fifth in the world rankings, but with their mixture of experienced old heads and exciting youngsters, there’s every reason to believe they can outperform that ranking in Paris.
Crucially they appear to be on the friendlier side of the draw and have a pretty good shot at topping their group, with only one country in Group B, Argentina, ranked above the Aussies.
If they can finish first in the group stage then the Hockeyroos will likely not come head-to-head with the all-conquering Netherlands until at least the semi-finals.
Who is the favourite to win gold in women’s hockey at the 2024 Olympics?
The Netherlands have to go into the tournament as favourites after completely dominating women’s hockey for the past few years.
Not only are they well clear at the top of the world rankings, but the Dutch women have won the last three major tournaments – World Cups in 2022 and 2018 to go with their Olympic gold medal in Tokyo – and their squad contains the two most recent winners of the world player of the year award, in Xan de Waard and Felice Albers.
They will be wary of overconfidence though, with any slip-ups in the group stage meaning they could end up facing a tough clash with the likes of Australia or Argentina in the quarter-finals.
Which countries have qualified for women’s hockey at the 2024 Olympics?
Group A
Belgium
China
France
Germany
Japan
Netherlands
Group B
Argentina
Australia
Great Britain
South Africa
Spain
USA